Forever Together
by brookefan329
Summary: COMPLETE. AU Haley James was perfectly content with her life in the quiet little town of Tree Hill. She had good grades, great friends and a close family. One day someone came into her life that would change it forever. A very different Naley story.
1. Brown Eyed Girl

**Author's note:** Thanks to anyone who reads this. This is a very special story for me and I have poured my heart and soul into writing it. It is pretty long but I promise tons of twists and turns along the way. For any of you out there who aren't really Naley lovers, give this story a chance, I promise it is a very different Naley story.

Chapter 1- Brown Eyed Girl

Haley James stood in front of her mirror brushing her hair. Brushing her hair always calmed her nerves, and right now her nerves were going out of control. Today was Haley's first day at her first job. She had been 16 for months now and avoided getting a job for as long as she could, but with her sophomore year of high school coming to and end her parents told her that unless she got a part time job this summer she could say good bye to ever getting her driver's license. So, about a week ago, she had headed to the grocery store in walking distance to her house to fill out an application. She was interviewed on the spot and asked to start the following week. Well, the following week was here and she was so nervous.

Just as she was about to head downstairs to get a ride from her parents to work the phone rang. Haley ran to it and grabbed it up, "Hello."

"Hey Hales. What's up for tonight?" Peyton Sawyer, one of Haley's best friends asked.

"I have to go to work. My first night. I am so nervous."

"It will be fine. What time do you work until?"

"Nine. I'll call you when I get home and we can do something." Haley was already looking forward to getting this dreaded shift out of the way.

"Sounds good. I will call Brooke and we can plan something. Have fun, bye." With that, Peyton hung up.

Haley had the two best friends a girl could ask for. Peyton Sawyer was the artsy one. She was always really down to earth and never impulsive. Determination was one of her strong suits, when she set her mind to something she set up a plan to get it and followed it out to a tee. She almost never gave up on anything. Brooke Davis was the complete opposite. While Peyton had blonde curly hair, Brooke had dark straight hair. While Peyton stayed home drawing or doing homework, Brooke ran around chasing boys. Brooke was sometimes a little ditzy, but it never got annoying, everyone, including the boys, thought it was adorable. Brooke loved to have fun and was open to trying anything. Haley was somewhere right in between the two. She had light brown wavy hair, that she usually straightened, and brown eyes. She did really well in school but people were surprised to find that out because she was always out doing something fun. Haley could be ditzy at times and other times really down to earth. All three girls had only one thing in common, dance.

Haley, Brooke and Peyton had met in a ballet class when they were in sixth grade. Haley went to a different school than Brooke and Peyton but starting the following fall the three would be in middle school together. From the day they met they were inseparable. It seemed that all of their differences meshed together perfectly, creating an amazing friendship. Haley knew that she could count on Brooke and Peyton for everything, she knew that they would always be there for her and as long as she had those two girls by her side she knew that she could conquer the world.

"Haley, are you ready? We have to get going if you are going to be on time." Haley's mom Lydia yelled from the bottom of the stairs.

"Yeah Mom, I am coming now." Haley grabbed her bright red apron off her bed and headed out the door. She hoped that the three hour shift didn't take too long.

ooooOoooo

"You must be Haley James. My name it Patti, I will be your supervisor. We will head over here and I will give you a quick lesson on bagging. You will just bag groceries tonight and start cashier training next weekend." Patti walked over to a register and gave Haley a quick lesson on what should go with what and how much to put in every bag. "Looks like you got it Haley, why don't you head down there to register 10 and bag for Nathan?"

"Sure." Haley headed down towards register 10 and started in on her task. She just went about her task for a few minutes, the cashier she was helping out hadn't even bothered to turn around to say to her so she just kept quietly working.

As the customer headed towards the door Nathan finally turned around. He hesitated for a minute before saying anything. "Hey, I'm Nathan."

It took Haley a second to find her own words, Nathan was absolutely gorgeous. He was tall and had dark hair that was a little messy, not bad messy though, very cute messy. His eyes were the brightest blue that Haley had ever seen, she could take her eyes off of them. "I'm Haley."

"I have never seen you here before, have you been working here long?" Nathan was amazed by this girl that was standing in front of him. She was one of the cutest girls he had every laid eyes on. He was trying to get through his customers as quickly as possible so that he would have more of a chance to talk to Haley.

"Nope, this is my first night. Have you worked here long?" Haley was screaming at herself in her head, there had to be some other, cooler question she could have asked. He was going to think she was a loser and only wanted to talk about work.

"About a year. It's an okay job, makes good enough money. Do you go to Tree Hill High?" Nathan figured she must go to a different school, after all, he would have remembered seeing her.

"Yep, I will be a junior in the fall. What about you?"

"I will be a senior." Right then Nathan's customer interrupted their conversation.

Things got a little busier and Nathan and Haley didn't have a chance to say more than a few words for the rest of the night. Before Haley knew it it was 9 and time for her to leave. "Well, it looks like my shift is over." Haley started to walk away.

"Wait, Haley. When do you work again?" Nathan called after her.

Haley turned around, "I work everyday next week from 9 to1, training. Maybe I'll see you." With that Haley walked off. She was very impressed with herself, she knew that walking away like that was something that would definitely stick in his mind. As she walked outside towards her mother's car she knew, that boy was going to change her life.

Nathan watched as Haley walked out of the store. He was quickly running through his schedule in his head hoping that he would see a lot of her in the upcoming week. He wasn't sure what it was, but there was definitely something about Haley.

ooooOoooo

"So, tell me about your night." Brooke started in on Haley as soon as she walked in the door. The three girls had decided to have a sleepover at Brooke's house. She was the only one of the three of them who had a room downstairs, away from parents, where they could stay up as late as they wanted without being bothered.

"Work was fine. I met a boy."

"You what? You were only there for three hours, how did you meet a boy? And besides that, what about Jeff?" That was Peyton, always being the realistic one. Jeff was Haley's boyfriend, he was two years older than her, a senior who would be graduating the following weekend. They hadn't been dating for that long, just a few months, and things were kind of up in the air since he would be leaving for college in Florida in the end of August.

"Jeff and I are fine. I didn't hook with this kid or anything, I only said I met him. Calm down Pey!" Haley had to admit to herself, she had kind of forgotten about Jeff when she was talking to Nathan.

"Fine, I'll calm down. I just don't want you to do anything stupid."

"Shut up Peyton! Haley, tell us about this boy." Brooke wanted nothing else than to hear about Haley's new interest. She could see the look in her eyes, there was something special about this guy.

"Well, his name is Nathan. He is going to be a senior in the fall. He goes to Tree Hill…" Haley started.

"Wait, Nathan? As in Nathan Scott? I totally forgot her worked there." Brooke jumped off the bed and grabbed her yearbook off of her desk, flipping through a few pages she stopped and held it up for Haley, "Is this him?"

"Yeah, that's him. Do you know him?"

"Come on Haley, everyone has heard of Nathan Scott. He's all bad boy and stuff, always getting into trouble. He was the one who got in trouble for being drunk at the homecoming dance this year, remember?" Brooke was impressed, Haley usually settled on boring boys.

"I do remember that. Wow, that is really surprising. He seemed so nice and sweet." Haley felt a little bit confused, the last thing she would have guessed about Nathan was that he was Tree Hill's "bad boy."

"Well, you had just better be careful, you don't want to go and get yourself into any kind of trouble." There was Peyton again, being her good old self.

"Don't worry, I will be fine." Haley said as her mind drifted back to those blue eyes. Hearing that he had this reputation she knew she should probably stay away, but in the back of her mind there was a little voice telling her that that was easier said than done.


	2. Manic Monday

Chapter 2- Manic Monday

Haley made her way slowly to work. Both of her parents had to work that morning so she had to walk. She had gotten up super early to take the time to do her hair and makeup, just in case Nathan was working, and now she didn't want to get there too early and look like a dork in front of him. She had secretly been looking forward to today all weekend, and she really hoped that all of that excitement would be worth and it and that Nathan would be there.

As she walked through the parking lot towards the front door of the store she ran her fingers through her hair. Haley was grateful that it wasn't too hot out that morning so her hair hadn't frizzed during her walk. Walking in she headed towards the time clock and did a quick once over of all the cashiers. Her heart sank when she saw that Nathan wasn't there.

After punching in she walked towards the supervisor stations, an older woman walked up to her. "Haley James?"

"Yeah."

"I am Donna, I will be training you, follow me." Donna led her back to a computer room and set her up to begin. She explained that she would spend 3 days on the computer and then 2 days training on the register with Donna helping her. Haley was disappointed to hear this, if she was holed up in this room there was no way she would see Nathan. "Now, why don't you work on this until 11 and then take your 15 minutes break. Come back and get through whatever else you can and I will come at 12:45 and we can go over some things quickly before you leave."

"Okay, thanks." Haley took a deep breathe and figured she might as well get started so that this boring morning can just be over.

ooooOoooo

Leaning back in her chair Haley rubbed her eyes. She felt like she had been in there forever. She looked at the clock and saw that it was a little after 11. Hitting pause on the training, she stood up and headed towards the break room.

"Haley, is that you?" Nathan stood up from his seat and gazed out into the hallway.

"Nathan, hi. I didn't know you were working, I have been stuck in that training room." Haley started as she walked into the break room, Nathan sat back down and continued smoking his cigarette.

"Yeah, training sucks, big time. I hated it so much. It isn't so bad once you get out on the register." As Haley sat down Nathan reached into his apron pocket and held out his pack of cigarettes to her, "Do you smoke?"

"No, thanks though." Haley was a little disappointed, she had never dated anyone who smoked. She stopped herself though, she had a boyfriend, she shouldn't think about dating Nathan.

"So did you do anything fun this weekend?" Nathan wondered that Haley did in her spare time.

"Actually, I had my ballet recital Saturday and then I went to the beach Sunday." Haley hoped he wouldn't think that ballet was stupid.

"Ballet, that's cool, my sister used to dance. Who did you go to the beach with?" Images of Haley walking around in a bikini popped into his head.

"My two best friends and my boyfriend." Haley figured she had to say it, she didn't want to lie, she was a terrible liar.

"Oh, you have a boyfriend." Nathan was a little disappointed to hear this. He was surprised that he was disappointed, Nathan wasn't the kind of guy who usually cared about girls. He was the kind of guy who had girls chasing him. He had quite the reputation around Tree Hill High and could get pretty much any girl he wanted. They were all dumb and pathetic to him though. The way the showed no respect for themselves when they threw themselves at Nathan. It was rare that he actually took interest in a girl. "Is he anyone I would know?"

"Maybe, he's a senior, he graduates next week, Jeff Gifford."

"I know Jeff, we had physics together. He's a nice guy." Nathan didn't really know Jeff all that well, but didn't have any problem with him. He seemed like a nice enough guy. He definitely seemed like the type of guy Nathan guessed Haley went for.

"Yeah he is." Haley shifted in her seat, there was a new found tension in the air. She wondered if she shouldn't have said anything about Jeff, but then again, she was elated that Nathan actually looked kind of disappointed. Nathan Scott, bad boy, disappointed because good girl Haley James has a boyfriend.

A few minutes later Nathan broke through the awkward silence, "Well, I have to get back to work. It was good talking to you Haley." Nathan started towards the door.

"You too Nathan, hopefully I'll get to work with you later this week when I am on register." Haley didn't want to seem too eager but she did want Nathan to know she was kind of interested in seeing him again.

"Actually, I work evenings the rest the week. I'll be on vacation the week after that, so maybe I will see you when I get back." With that Nathan walked out of the break room.

Haley sat there a little disappointed that she wouldn't see him for a while. Then she realized that this was wrong, thinking like this was wrong. She had a boyfriend, he was graduating next weekend, she would be busy spending time with him and everything. It didn't matter if Nathan would be gone.

ooooOoooo

That night Nathan was hanging out at his best friend Tim Smith's house. Tim was kind of a goofy guy, but he was always right there for Nathan. A lot of people called him Nathan's sidekick, and most times that name was well deserved. When Nathan had gotten a job at Food Lion last summer Tim had followed suite and started there about a month after Nathan.

"Have you met that new girl that is working at the Lion?" Nathan and Tim always referred to it as the Lion, they felt like it made working as a cashier at a grocery store seem a little cooler.

"Which one? There have been a few this past week."

"Haley, she just started Friday." Nathan looked at Tim as he scrunched up his face in thought.

"No I don't think so. Why, is she smokin'? You want to get with her?" Tim was always excited to hear about Nathan's conquests.

"Na, it isn't like that, I was just curious if you noticed her, or if you knew her."

"What's her name again?"

"Haley, she was a sophomore." Nathan watched as Tim scrunched up his face once again.

"The only Haley I know is my tutor, Haley James." Tim went over and dug through a pile of clothes, finally pulling up his yearbook. He flipped through a few pages, "Is this her?" He asked, holding up the book for Nathan.

"Yeah, that's her. You know her?"

"Yeah, she is my tutor, like I said. She is one of those goody goody type girls. Why?" Tim looked at Nathan curiously.

"No reason." Nathan brushed it off. He didn't want his best friend to know that this girl, this supposed goody goody girl, had gotten under his skin. There was just something about her. "Let's go and see if we can get your brother to buy us some beer, then we can head down to this party I heard about." With that another normal night of drunken partying started for Nathan.


	3. Breaking Up is Hard to Do

Chapter 3- Breaking Up is Hard to Do

"Call me when you get home." Jeff told Haley as he walked her to his front door. Brooke's mom was waiting in the driveway for her and Brooke, they had gone over to Jeff's to watch a movie.

"Sure, no problem." Haley leaned in and kissed him good bye. She was a little worried about why he wanted her to call him, he had been acting weird all night. Shaking it off she walked towards the car with Brooke.

When she got home she went right to her room with the phone and climbed out of her window onto the roof. Haley's bedroom window went right out onto the roof over the garage, that was her special spot. She would go out there when she wanted to talk on the phone later than her parents allowed or when she wanted to ensure that her sisters wouldn't hear her conversation. Nervously she dialed Jeff's phone number and waited for him to pick up.

"Hello."

"Hey it's me. I just got home, what's up?"

"I don't think that we should see each other anymore." Jeff felt bad to say it but he knew it was best.

"Why? I thought that everything was going good?" Haley was confused, she kind of knew it was coming but wasn't sure why.

"It just seems stupid for us to stay together for the rest of the summer when we both know that I will be moving to Florida in like a month and a half. Why get any more attached than we already are?"

"Sure, whatever. Have a nice life." Haley hung up the phone. She couldn't believe him, he was supposed to be older and more mature, but he hadn't had the guts to break up with her to her face when she was at her house earlier.

Crawling back through her window into her bedroom she walked over to her dresser, put on some pajamas and got into bed. Haley laid in bed just thinking. She tried to avoid it, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Jeff. What a jerk. She wasn't even sad, she had known that they would break up before he went away to school, she was just so mad at the way he handled it.

Trying to shift her mind away from the anger she thought about what she had to do tomorrow. She had to work from 12-6 at Food Lion, it was the Fourth of July so it would be super busy, then she was going on a picnic with her family. Working was going to be the last thing she would want to do tomorrow, she knew that she would be in a terrible mood and still really pissed off at Jeff. Then her thoughts of work drifted towards Nathan. She hadn't seen him since before he went away on vacation. Their paths hadn't crossed in weeks. Maybe he would be there tomorrow?

ooooOoooo

The next day Haley walked into what could only be described as pure chaos at Food Lion. The lines were ridiculously long and no one looked particularly happy about it.

"Haley, thank god you are here. You can go and open up on register 5." One of Haley's supervisors, Rhonda, barely even stopped as she barked out the order.

Haley made her way over to the register and was pleasantly surprised to see that Nathan was on the register right next to her. Things were already looking up.

After about half an hour things hadn't settled down at all, a short and awkward looking guy strolled up to Haley's register and started bagging for her. "Tim, what are you doing here?"

"Hey Haley, I work here. I have for a while, I started a little while after my best friend Nathan." Tim pointed to Nathan. "Have you guys met?"

"Yeah, we have worked together a few times." Haley was surprised that they two were best friends, Tim was so, well, different. Different was the only word for him. He was definitely not like anyone Haley had ever met. Nathan seemed so cool and together and everything, the exact opposite of Tim. But hey, some people wondered what it was that tied Haley, Brooke and Peyton together.

The hours passed more rapidly once Haley had Tim to talk to. It took her a little bit to realize, but she was pretty sure Tim was flirting with her, in his own awkward way. She actually found it kind of flattering, Tim had never showed interest in her like this before. Haley began to loosen up and flirted back a little bit.

Nathan kept looking over at Tim and Haley, they sure were having a good time together. Tim seemed to be trying to get his game on. Nathan started to get a little jealous. Then he realized that he hadn't let on to Tim, in the least bit, that he was interested in Haley. Hell, he wasn't even sure that he was. All he knew was that she was beautiful in a different way than the girls he usually hooked up with. He also knew that she intrigued him, he wanted to know more. It seemed like they were so different, and that made him want to know more. He wanted to know if that was really the case. Well, now definitely wasn't the time, it was busier than anything else and he knew he would get in trouble if he started yelling across the registers to Haley.

Haley glanced back at the clock and was relieved to see that it was almost 6. She started to shut things down when Tim did something really unexpected. "Hey, Haley. Would you maybe want to go and see a movie sometime?"

Haley had to think about it for a minute. She glanced over at Nathan feeling a little guilty, but then again he really hadn't shown any interest in her. Haley hadn't even figured out if she felt anything for him yet anyways. "Sure, why not? When is good for you?"

"What about Wednesday night, I only work till 6, so maybe we could go and see a 9 o'clock movie?"

"Sounds good, I work till 7 so that will give me plenty of time to get ready. We can work out the details that day." Haley figured that if all else fails she would at least have some good laughs, Tim was pretty funny. "I'm out now, I'll talk to you later."

"Okay, bye Haley."

As she walked by Nathan's register she gave him a little wave, "Catch you later."

Nathan's eyes followed Haley out the door, when he turned back around he saw that Tim was now at the end of his register. "Guess who has a date with Haley Wednesday?"

"What, seriously? You are going to take her out? I thought you said that she is a goody goody. Anyways, I thought she had a boyfriend?" Nathan was surprised, he was actually a little jealous. Jealous of Tim, now that was definitely a first.

"Yeah well that goody goody thing is kind of a turn on. She is actually kind of hot. And she just broke up with her boyfriend, last night." Tim looked pretty proud of himself.

Nathan felt bad and knew that there really wasn't any great future for Tim and Haley, she was way too good for him. "Good for you man, I am sure you will have a good time." With that Nathan turned his focus back to his customers. He had to just shake it off, he wasn't going to let Haley James get under his skin like this.

ooooOoooo

Wednesday night Haley was finishing up her shift and getting ready to head home and change for her date with Tim. She walked over to her supervisor, "If there isn't anything else I can do I think I will head home a few minutes early, if that is okay with you."

"Why, hot date tonight?" Rhonda, her supervisor teased. Rhonda was an older woman but she was always joking around and was super nice. Haley and her had bonded right away, it was more of a mother daughter type bond than friends, but whatever it was Haley was pretty happy about it.

"Actually, I am going out with another employee, we are going to go and see a movie."

"Nathan or Tim?" Rhonda gave Haley a look.

"Tim of course, Nathan isn't interested in me. I am not his type of girl." Haley was surprised at the way Rhonda had responded.

"That's a laugh. Both of those boys have a crush on you. Don't let Nathan fool you, I saw the way his eyes bulged out of his head the first night he saw you. I see the way he looks after you when you leave for the day. He definitely likes you, he just isn't as obvious about it as Tim."

"Well, I hate to disagree with you, but I am pretty sure that Nathan Scott doesn't like me." Haley was secretly thrilled to hear Rhonda say this, but she knew that the woman had to be jumping to conclusions. Boys like Nathan didn't fall for girls like Haley, it just didn't happen.

"Keep telling yourself that honey, but just keep in mind, both of those boys have the hots for you. Whether you can see it or not doesn't make it any less true."


	4. It's Me Inside Your Head

Chapter 4- It's Me Inside Your Head

Haley and Tim had been seeing each other for a few weeks now, it wasn't anything serious but they were both having a good time. They had gone out a few times since the movies and talked pretty regularly on the phone.

One thing that Haley noticed about Tim was that he lived vicariously through Nathan. It seemed as though most of the things he bragged about doing he had done with Nathan. He would also brag about things that Nathan had done. It was as if Tim felt that Nathan was the reason that he was as popular as he was.

What Tim didn't know was all this talking about Nathan was making Haley like Nathan more and more. She had been unsure about it at first, but realized that she became more and more anxious to hear more about Nathan, even if it was through Tim. Haley didn't know how it had happened, but she had fallen for Nathan, and most of it was due to her dating his best friend.

Maybe Rhonda had been right, maybe Nathan was into her. All she knew was that it seemed worth it to find out. But first, she had to figure out how to deal with Tim. School would be starting soon and if they went into it dating, or kind of dating, or whatever they were doing, everyone would know. Then, if she decided to call it quits everyone would know. She didn't want to embarrass Tim. Haley knew what she had to do.

She grabbed the phone and dialed Tim.

"Hey, this is the Tim."

Haley had to laugh out loud at how he answered his phone. "Hey Tim, it's me, Haley."

"Hey Haley, what's up?"

"Can we talk?" Haley knew that those were three words that were dreaded by every guy on the planet, but she didn't know how else to start.

"Sure, what's up?"

"Well, I know that we haven't really defined what is going on with us. Obviously it is something more than friends but it really isn't anything official. So I don't really know how to say this, but whatever it is, I don't think that we should keep it going."

"Are you breaking up with me?" Tim wasn't really that surprised. He had been getting the sneaking suspicion that Haley was into Nathan. She had been asking about him more and more.

"I guess so, but I don't want it to be like that. I just think that whatever is going on between us, well, we should go back to being just friends."

"It's cool. No big deal. I have to run though, I'll talk to you later Haley." Tim really didn't feel like sitting there discussing this at length with her, what was done was done.

"Okay, bye Tim, thanks for being so understanding." After saying that Haley heard him hang up in her ear. She was pretty sure that he wasn't mad. Haley wondered how long it would be until he told Nathan that nothing was going on between the two of them anymore. Knowing Tim it wouldn't be long.

ooooOoooo

Over the next few weeks Haley began talking to Nathan more and more while they were working. Every time that she left him she knew that she liked him more than before. Everything that she learned about him she liked. They hadn't spent any time together outside of work, but Haley started doing things that indicated to her that she definitely had a crush on him.

Haley would spend extra time getting ready for work if she knew Nathan would be there. She would always try and drop hints that she didn't have any plans after work, in hopes that he would invite her to do something. She didn't want to be too forward about it though, she didn't want to feel like a loser. On the days she didn't work Haley would try and find excuses to go to the store. Any time her mom needed anything Haley would go with her. She would use any excuse to see Nathan.

Haley wondered how things would be when school started. Her and Nathan were definitely on different levels. He was really popular and well known at Tree Hill High. Haley, on the other hand, had plenty of friends, but she was far from popular. She was quite sure that no one beyond her friends and classmates had any clue that she existed. Haley really wondered if Nathan would be as anxious to talk about her in school. She really wasn't sure what went through Nathan's head about her, but she figured that seeing how he acted around her once school started would give her a better idea.

ooooOoooo

Nathan hated to admit it, but he was definitely falling for Haley. So many other girls had tried to win his heart, girls that were more like him. Girls that were popular and that partied all the time, they practically threw themselves at Nathan. All he could think about though was Haley. There was just something about her. Whenever he was around her he felt like a different person.

They were talking every chance they got at work, but hadn't spent time out of work. He could tell that she was dropping hints but he honestly had no idea what they would even do. Nathan was used to hooking up with girls, not actually dating them, he really had no idea how to even approach it.

Nathan just wished that there was a way he could figure out what Haley was thinking. For all he knew she wasn't even interested in him, she as just being friendly. Nathan didn't know how he was going to do it, but he had to figure out what was going on in Haley's head. He had debated time and time again about just asking her out, but he couldn't take the risk of being turned down. It would kill his reputation. He could hear it now, the heartbreaker Nathan Scott gets turned down by a tutor girl. It just wouldn't be good. Nathan was going to have to find out a way to find out what was going on inside that head of Haley James.


	5. First Day

**Author's note: **Yay, my first review on this story, thanks so much to **CCScott23. **I have been working on this story for a while now and already have more than ten chapters done. But the lack of reviews makes me wonder if it is worth continuing. This story is so important to me but I feel as though I am writing it for myself. I know that people are reading it and just not reviewing so come on guys, help change that. Let me know what you think. I promise twists and turns in this story like you wouldn't believe, please make me feel as though you want to read it.

Chapter 5- First Day

Haley, Peyton and Brooke met at Brooke's locker before heading to homeroom the morning of their first day of junior year. This had been the tradition since freshman year, as Brooke's locker was closest to all three of their separate homerooms. The girls were just chatting about who they had seen and who was wearing what then they first bell rang.

"Well here we go girls, another year awaits." Haley got ready to head off to homeroom, she hated to be late to class, especially on the first day.

"Yeah, we better get to it. I'll meet you guys outside at our usual table for lunch?" Brooke looked forward to lunch all day, she hated classes, they were all so boring.

"Sounds good, see you guys then." Haley walked towards her homeroom.

As she walked into the room she looked around for any familiar faces. She had always hated that they assigned homerooms by last name, none of Haley's friends last names started with J. She was always all alone. Thankfully homeroom would be busy today, the teacher would hand out all of their schedules and then they had to go through all the usual first day stuff.

Before she knew it the bell rang dismissing Haley to head to her first class. Haley had played the violin for years and she already knew that orchestra would be her first class of the day. She headed down the hall connecting the music wing to the rest of Tree Hill High. As she rounded the corner she heard a voice behind her, "Haley, wait up."

Haley turned around to see Nathan heading towards her. "Hey Nathan, what's up?"

"The usual, just heading down to gym, I have it first period this year. What about you?"

"Orchestra. I play the violin, I have since elementary school." As soon as Haley said it she wanted to take it back, she knew that Nathan would think it was stupid. Guys like him didn't care about stuff like that.

"That's cool, my older sister played the violin. She actually got a scholarship from it when she went away to school. So Haley, tell me, how is it that we have gone through the last two years both being in this school and our paths never crossed and now on the first day we run into each other right away?"

"I don't know, maybe we just never had classes near each other or anything. Anyways, I'm not that memorable, maybe our paths did cross but you just never noticed me." Haley hated to admit it, but it was the truth. Guys like Nathan didn't usually notice girls like her.

"I don't know Haley, I find that pretty hard to believe. You are definitely someone that makes me take notice." Nathan shot her a smile. "Well here we are, I'm off to gym. Hopefully our paths will cross again."

Haley looked after him, she was pretty sure that he had just flirted with her a little bit. She wasn't too sure about that though, guys like Nathan probably flirted with every girl, it didn't mean anything was special about her. Haley tried to brush it off and headed to orchestra.

ooooOoooo

After orchestra Haley headed towards the tutoring center. She had started tutoring freshman year. That was the first year she really stood out academically and one of her teachers advised her to give it a try. She instantly liked it and she was good at it. Helping someone master a math problem or write their first A paper was a high that Haley couldn't get enough of.

Knowing that she wouldn't have anyone to tutor this morning, since it was still pretty early, Haley pulled out her summer reading book. She figured she could take another quick glance through it before English next period.

Just as Haley started to get into her favorite chapter of the book she heard a familiar voice. "As I live and breathe, Haley James."

"Lucas, what are you doing here?" Lucas was Haley's closest guy friend. They had met freshman year when Haley dated Lucas' best friend. She actually broke up with him because she started to develop a crush on Lucas. Nothing ever came of it romantically, but an amazing friendship did develop between the two.

"I have a free period now. I don't have to take gym because of basketball. I had nothing to do today and I knew I could find you here so I figured I would stop in and see how things were going." Lucas knew that something was going on with Haley, she seemed a little out of it today.

"Ya know, I actually could use your advice. I have a guy question." One of Haley's favorite things about her friendship with Lucas was that he gave great advice when it came to understanding guys. Part of that was probably because Lucas was the classic guy. He was real big into sports, basketball especially. He was pretty attractive and pretty popular. Girls regularly threw themselves at him but Lucas was a great guy and never led them on or just hooked up with them.

"What's going on Haley?" It had been a little while since Haley had come to Lucas about anything like this.

"I am just trying to figure out this guy. He isn't someone that I ever expected to have feelings for but I do and I don't really know if he has feelings for me. It is so confusing."

"Well, does he act happy when he first sees you? Does has ask questions and try to get to know you?" Lucas thought it was cute, seeing Haley so insecure about whoever this guy was.

"Yeah, he always seems happy when he sees me. And we talk a lot, pretty much every chance we get. He always asks questions about me, what I like to do and all that. But I don't know, he hasn't made a move and I am kind of surprised. I thought that my signals were pretty clear." Haley didn't know what else to do besides drop hints that she wanted to do something with Nathan outside of work. "We haven't spent any time together, just the two of us. There are always other people around so we don't get to talk about anything all that personal."

"Well then, it sounds like the best thing you can do is get this guy alone and see what happens. Maybe he just doesn't want to make a move with other people around."

"I'll have to try that. Thanks Lucas." Haley started to gather up her stuff, she wanted to run to the bathroom before the bell rang. "I'm going to take off, thanks for stopping and and for the advice. I'll see you later." Haley headed towards the door.

"Wait, Haley, who is this guy?" Lucas called after her.

"That isn't important. Thanks again Lucas."

ooooOoooo

Haley was at her locker before last period. None of her teachers had assigned homework so she was putting all her stuff in her locker so she could head home right after last period. She had to work right after school and her parents were working so she had to walk home and then to work, she didn't want to have to walk all the way back to her locker.

"Wow, aren't I a lucky guy, twice in one day." Nathan appeared at Haley's side. "Want to hear the craziest thing?"

"Sure."

"My locker is right around that corner." Nathan pointed to the corner right down the hall from Haley's locker. "It looks like we will be seeing a lot of each other this year."

"It does look that way. So, do you have to work tonight?" Haley hoped she would see him later.

"Yeah, not until 6:15, thankfully I only have to work for three hours. That is one good thing about school, shorter shifts. What about you, do you have to work?"

"Yeah, I at three, until six. I have to walk home too. Then all the way to work. I really hope that I make it there on time." Haley hoped he would get her hint.

"Yeah, I told them I couldn't get there until three thirty on school days, I don't want to be too rushed. Listen though, if you don't think you will make it I could give you a ride, if you want."

"Sure, that would be great." Haley was so excited, it worked. He picked up on it.

"Okay, why don't you meet me in the parking lot after this class. I drive a blue blazer, it is in the senior lot."

"Sounds great, I'll see you then, thanks Nathan." Haley shut her locker and started to walk away, thinking to herself, what the heck does a blazer look like?

ooooOoooo

Haley wandered aimlessly through the parking lot, she wasn't too sure what a blazer was so she was just hoping to see Nathan. Finally she spotted him walking her way. "Good, you found it. Ready to go?"

Haley looked at the car he was walking towards, it was a blue SUV. Now she knew what a blazer was. "Yeah, definitely. If you have somewhere to go you can just drop me at home and then I can walk to work."

"It's okay, I don't have anything to do. I can wait and drive you to work, I wouldn't want you to be late." Nathan unlocked Haley's door and then walked around to his own. He hopped in and headed towards the exit.

When they arrived at Haley's she had Nathan wait in the car while she ran inside to change. She didn't know if her sisters were home and she didn't want to have to introduce him. Her sisters could be a little crazy and Haley didn't want Nathan to think it ran in the family.

Not wanting to make him wait Haley changed quickly and ran back outside. "Thanks for waiting," she said as she got into his car.

"No problem." Nathan threw his car into reverse and then headed towards the store. They just chatted about their teachers and stuff on the way.

When the pulled up to the front of the store Haley started to pull the door handle, "Haley wait."

"What's up?"

"Do you want to do something sometime? With me? Outside of work? Just the two of us?" Nathan was shocked at himself, he knew he sounded like he couldn't even form a sentence.

"Sure, that sounds good. I would like that." Haley pulled a piece of paper out of her purse and scribbled her phone number on it, she handed it to Nathan. "Here, just give me a call and we can work it out."

"Sounds good, I will call you tonight when I get home from work, is 9:30 okay?"

"It is great, I'll talk to you then. And thanks for the ride." Haley opened her door and hopped out. She walked through the doors of Food Lion with a huge smile on her face, she was pretty sure that smile was there to stay.


	6. Could It Be?

Chapter 6- Could It Be?

Haley was in her bedroom half watching some tv show, she really had no idea what was happening on the show because she kept looking at the clock over and over. She knew that Nathan said he would call at 9:30, but she guessed that guys like Nathan didn't call right when they said they would. She was actually pretty sure that if he called within an hour of when he said he would that was pretty impressive.

Finally Haley shut off the tv, after all it was hopeless, she was not paying any attention. Instead she went over to her computer and tried to play some computer game. Miraculously she managed to get pretty in to the game and lost track of time. When the phone rang it made her jump. Running towards the phone she quickly grabbed at it, took a deep breath and hit talk.

"Hello."

"Is Haley there?"

"This is Haley." Haley was shocked, looking at the clock she saw that it was 9:31. One minute late, she couldn't believe it.

"Haley, it's Nathan. How are you?"

"I am good thanks. How was work?" Haley felt as though Nathan's voice sounded nervous. She thought that it would be good to get some small talk going to that he could relax.

"It was fine. Not too busy, but not slow, just right. How was work for you?" Nathan was pretty sure that this was the longest amount of time he had ever talked on the phone with a girl, besides his mother that is.

"It was fine. It amazes me how quickly a three hour shift goes by. I love it, it will suck on the weekends when I have to work long shifts again."

"Speaking of the weekend, did you still want to do something?" Nathan hoped that she hadn't changed her mind.

"Sure, that sounds good. When?"

"Well, I have to work Friday night until like 10, so what about Saturday night?" Nathan guessed that 10 was kind of late, Haley struck him as the kind of girl who had a strict curfew.

"I have a dance competition Saturday night, but I should be done with that by 8. I can call you when its all done if you want, it is right over at the school."

"That sounds good, make sure I give you my pager number before we get off the phone. What do you want to do?" Nathan really wanted Haley to decide what they did, he didn't want to invite her to do something that she would be uncomfortable with.

"Well, I will probably be pretty hungry, maybe we could go and get something to eat?" Haley figured that that was a pretty safe bet. It wasn't totally lame but wasn't anything crazy. Haley was pretty sure that Nathan drank and partied every weekend. She had drank a couple of time with Brooke and Peyton, just trying it out, but she had never been to a party where everyone was drinking.

"That sounds good. Why don't you page me when you are ready and I can pick you up at the school, unless you want to go and change or something?"

"No, that will be okay. I will have normal clothes with me, I can just wash off the crazy make up I wear, otherwise I will kind of look like a clown." Haley knew people would already wonder what a guy that looked like Nathan was doing with a girl like Haley, she didn't want to make them wonder anymore. If she had on her stake makeup people would definitely be wondering about the two of them.

"That sounds like a plan. Well, I have to get some homework done so I had better go. Oh yeah, my pager number. It is 695-4488."

"Okay, I wrote it down. I'll call you when I am ready. So, I guess I'll see you then?"

"Yeah, I'll see you then. Good night Haley."

"Good night Nathan."

Haley hung up the phone and immediately starting dancing around her bedroom. She couldn't believe that she actually had a date with Nathan Scott. He was way out of her league. She really hoped that they would have a good time. Then it hit her, what would she wear? Looking through her closet she thought that none of the stuff she had looked like something that was appropriate to wear on a date with Nathan Scott. Haley decided to call in reinforcements.

Picking up the phone she called up Brooke.

"Hello."

"Brooke it's me. What are you doing tomorrow night?" Haley prayed the response would be nothing, Brooke and Peyton would make sure that Haley wore something perfect.

"Nothing, why?"

"Sleepover, my house. I have a date Saturday night after the competition and I don't know what to wear, so bring some clothes with you. I have to look just right for this."

"Okay, just slow down. Who is this big date with?" Brooke had never heard Haley sound so unglued, she was always so level headed, she rarely went on and on like this.

"You wont believe it when I say it, but, Nathan Scott." Haley held her breathe, she was pretty sure that Brooke was going to flip out.

"WHAT? Nathan Scott? Are you serious? He is like a senior, a really popular senior. A really hot and popular senior. How did you land that?" Brooke was shocked, she expected her to say someone their own age, and a little less well known.

"Well you already knew that I worked with him, and today he gave me a ride to work. And asked me out when he dropped me off." Saying it again didn't make Haley believe it anymore. It still seemed too good to be true.

"Wow, this is incredible. I will definitely bring some stuff. We will find the perfect outfit, I promise." Brooke was already coming up with some ideas of things that Haley would look great in.

"Great, thanks Brooke. I am going to go and call Peyton. I will see you in the morning." With that Haley hung up, she was so excited she wanted to call Peyton so she could relish in this some more.

After calling Peyton and pretty much repeating the same conversation that she had had with Brooke, Haley down on her bed. No matter how many times she said it to herself, 'I have a date with Nathan Scott,' she still felt like it was unreal. Never in her wildest dreams did she think Nathan would ask her out. She had hoped for it, but never thought it would happen.

Haley knew when she saw Nathan for the first time that there was something about him. Something just drew her to him. She wondered if he had felt it too. If he felt time stop the first time they looked each other in the eyes. Right then, at that moment, Haley knew that there was something about him, and hoped that he would be around for a while. But, she didn't think it possible, until now. Could it be, he had felt it too?


	7. Just Say It

Chapter 7- Just Say It

Haley stood outside the high school waiting for Nathan. She half expected him to change his mind and not come. It wasn't like she had talked to him and he had said he was coming, she had just paged him and she was now standing there hoping that he still wanted to go out with her.

Just as she started to really get nervous she saw the blue blazer pulling into the parking lot. A rush of excitement went through Haley as she realized that this was it, this was her first date with Nathan Scott. It seemed too good to be true, but she knew that it was. So she took a deep breath and headed towards the car.

"Hey Haley. How was your competition?" Nathan had a huge smile on his face.

"It was good thanks. I actually won first place for my solo. It was a pretty good day. What about you? How was your day?"

"Well, it was my mom's birthday so I pretty much just hung out at her house with her all day. Had some cake and stuff a few hours ago." Normally Nathan wouldn't talk about his mother, it kind of messed with his tough guy image. But with Haley, he didn't care about his image so much.

"Are your parents still together?" Haley sensed from the way he said 'her house' that the answer was no.

"How about we first decide where to go and eat and then I will talk about that?"

"Okay, how about Tornado's? I would just about die for one of their burgers right now." Haley's mouth started to water at the thought. She hadn't eaten since breakfast.

"Sounds good. But back to my parents. No, they aren't still together. They divorced when I was 8. I am obviously used to it by now, but they are still pretty mean to each other. That makes it tough, when there are things that I want both of them to be at." Nathan paused, he couldn't believe how easy this was, the talking. She just looked at him and listened. "What about you, are your parents still together?"

"Yeah, but sometimes I don't think they wan to be. They have a pretty rocky relationship. A lot of times I get the feeling that they are together just because of me and my sisters." Haley didn't like to talk about it, how her perfect looking family was anything but.

"How many sisters do you have?" Nathan actually cared, he wanted to know everything about her.

"Two, both younger. What about you, any brothers or sisters?"

"I have two sisters too, they are both older."

Haley had learned from her past boyfriends and friends that are guys that the ones with sisters were usually more sensitive. She never thought that she would use the word sensitive to describe Nathan Scott, but she had to face it, he was already impressing her.

Haley glanced out the window as they pulled into the parking lot. "It looks pretty busy here."

"Yeah, it usually is on Saturday nights." Nathan parked his car and then went around to meet Haley on her side. They walked into the restaurant and Haley winced at the loud music and all the noise from people trying to talk loudly over the music. Nathan could tell that she wasn't really up for it, "Would you rather go somewhere else?"

"If that is okay, I just had a really long day and I kind of want to go somewhere a little quieter. I'm sorry, I hope that that is not a big deal." Haley felt bad but she could already feel a head ache starting.

"Not it is fine, let's go." Nathan put his arm on the small of Haley's back and guided her towards the door. He waited until they were outside before he started to talk again. "Where do you want to go instead?"

"Well, my friends are at the place right across the street. They have good burgers too, maybe we could stop there? We don't have to eat with them or anything like that." Haley wanted to hit herself for saying that, she wanted this to be a date, just the two of them. It was just that she really wanted Brooke and Peyton to meet Nathan. They had been hearing about him for so long now.

"No, that is fine. Let's go and eat with your friends, I would love to meet them." Nathan looked Haley right in the eyes and smiled.

When they walked towards Haley's friend's table they broke out into huge smiles as soon as they saw her. "Brooke, Peyton, this is Nathan. Nathan, this is Brooke, and this is Petyon. These are my best friends."

"It is really nice to meet both of you, Haley has talked about you girls a lot." Nathan slid into the booth after Peyton got up from her side of the booth and went to sit next to Brooke. Haley slid in next to him.

"Well, I hope that Haley hasn't told you too much of the bad stuff." Brooke playfully teased Nathan.

"No, of course it was all good. Don't worry." Nathan winked playfully at Brooke.

Haley had to laugh to herself, Nathan sure knew how to handle Brooke. She could tell Brooke was already impressed. It wasn't Brooke that was hard to please though, it was Peyton. Haley was anxious to see if Nathan could win her over.

"Did you guys order yet?" Haley already knew what she wanted.

"Nope, we actually had to wait to get a table, we only just got our drinks, you guys timed it perfectly." Peyton raised an eyebrow as she said that.

"Well, we went over to Tornado's and it was crazy, loud music and everything, I am way too tired for that kind of thing. So, we decided to come over here."

Their waitress came up and they all placed their order. While they waited for their food there was some small talk, Nathan started asking the girls questions about dance. They answered every one of them, the three friends loved to talk about dancing, it was their life. As he asked the questions Haley watched Peyton closely. Haley could tell that Nathan was succeeding in winning Peyton over. She was starting to warm up to him, when Peyton didn't like someone she didn't warm up at all. She stayed cold and replied with simple yes and no's or really short answers. But, after a little while, it was obvious that she started to like him and that she felt more comfortable.

At one point Haley looked over to Peyton, Brooke was explaining something to Nathan and Peyton looked at Haley and mouthed 'He is great.' Haley mouthed back, 'I know.'

After finishing their meals Nathan started to fidget a little bit. Haley caught on to this and excused them, "We are going to head out now. I am so glad that we met up with you guys. I'll talk to you both tomorrow."

"Bye girls, it was great to meet you. Hopefully I will see you again soon." Nathan said as he started to stand up.

"Yeah, see you later Nathan. It was great to meet you too." Brooke waved a little bit as she said it.

"Go and have some fun you guys. Nathan, it really was nice to meet you. I really do hope we see you again soon." As soon as the words left Peyton's mouth Haley knew that Nathan had done it, Peyton was impressed.

They walked out of the restaurant in a comfortable silence, once they were outside Nathan started to talk again, "Do you want me to talk you home now?" Nathan hoped that her answer would be no.

"No, not yet. I still have 2 more hours before curfew. Let's do something. Not anything crazy though, I am pretty tired." Haley hoped Nathan didn't think she was a loser because she didn't want to go and party or anything.

"I know just the things." Nathan pulled out of the parking lot and headed in a direction that Haley wasn't too familiar with.

"Where are we going?" Haley started to get a little nervous.

"To my house, I live with my dad and my sister. We just got a brand new tv and I figured we could pop in a short movie. It is only like 5 minutes away so I will be able to get you back in time. Does that sound okay?"

"Yeah, that sounds fine." Haley was secretly a littler nervous, she didn't know what Nathan would expect from her. What if he put a move on her? Sure, Haley had had boyfriends and fooled around with them a little, but nothing serious. She was really nervous about what he would want from her.

They pulled into the driveway of a huge house. "Well, this is it." Nathan said, as though he needed to explain.

"Wow, this is huge." Haley's jaw had just about his the floor, the house was gorgeous.

Nathan led Haley inside. She was amazed, his house was so nice. She hadn't expected that. The house was pretty new too, nothing like Haley's old house.

"Here, let me give you the tour." Nathan guided her through the family room, kitchen, dining room and den. "Oh, here is the best part." Nathan led her back through the kitchen and opened the back door to the deck. He led her outside around the deck. "This is my favorite part."

Haley looked down at the steam billowing from the hot tub into the cool night air. "This is so nice. I have always wanted a hot tub."

"Yeah, it is really nice. I have no complaints. Well, why don't we go and watch a movie? I will have to show you the upstairs next time, my dad and sister are asleep so I don't want to wake them." Next time, Nathan thought, he really hoped that there would be one.

Haley walked over and took a seat on the couch. Nathan sat down a little ways away from her. Right then Haley knew that her fears had been unfounded, Nathan wasn't going to try anything. She settled back as he flipped on a movie channel and they lost themselves in the movie.

ooooOoooo

On the way home Nathan was oddly quiet. As they turned into Haley's driveway Nathan shut off the car. "Can I ask you something Haley? It will probably sound really stupid."

"Sure, ask away." Haley wondered what he was going to ask.

"Well, these last few weeks have been really great Haley. I have really enjoyed getting to know you. And tonight, well I had a great time. So I guess, what I am asking you, do you want to be my girlfriend?"

Haley swore that she could see Nathan blushing. She was amazed, Nathan was blushing over her. "Of course I will be your girlfriend."

Hearing that, Nathan leaned over and kissed Haley softly on the lips. "Sleep tight, I'll see you at work tomorrow."

Haley climbed out of the door and resisted the urge to skip up the driveway. She was Nathan Scott's girlfriend and she could be happier about it.


	8. Everything Is Coming Up Roses

**Author's note:** Well, it took a while but I am finally getting reviews on this story. Keep it up guys, I was starting to get frustrated with the lack of reviews. Thanks to **1ThNalEy23, lilmonkeygirl31, **and **Lindsay23 **for taking the time to review. A special thanks to **CCScott23** for reviewing again.

Chapter 8- Everything is Coming Up Roses

Haley was over and Brooke's house, flipping through the new Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire. Of course they were gossiping while doing this. School had been in session for a little over a month and Brooke had settled right into her usual role as the gossip of the group. Haley didn't like to throw in any new gossip, but she definitely did love to hear what Brooke had to say.

"Now, onto something way more important, Nathan. How is everything going with you guys? I saw you making out by his locker the other day, all hot and heavy." Brooke remembered how shocked she was when she saw this, Haley was not usually the kind of person to make out in the hallway in the middle of school.

"They are going great. Today is actually our one month anniversary. I doubt he even knows though. But yeah, it is." Haley started to smile as she thought of how amazing the past month had been. Nathan was making her so happy, they spent as much time together and possible and always had fun, even when it was just Nathan coming over to Haley's and watching a movie. He had quickly won over both Haley's parents, that in itself was a huge task, but he had done well.

"Well, I can definitely say that you guys are causing a huge stir around the school. Everyone is talking about the good girl tutor who won the heart of the bad boy." Brooke looked towards Haley, she wasn't sure how much of this Haley had heard.

"Yeah, I have noticed. I was in the bathroom the other day and these two girls were talking about it, how crazy it was that he was not only dating a goody two shoes, but a goody two shoes who is only a junior. I am sure that he has heard this stuff too, but it doesn't seem to bother him. He is probably used to being the center of attention and it doesn't bother him when people talk about him, but I am new to it all. I don't know, it is just weird. Why do people care so much?" Haley looked towards her best friend, searching for some answers.

"Just because it isn't what usually happens. People don't usually date outside of their social circles. But you know what I say? I'll tell you, I say fuck them. Who cares? You guys are happy and that is all that matters. He doesn't hide our relationship or anything and that is great. Clearly he does not care at all what anyone thinks, he only thinks about how happy he is and making you just as happy. Don't worry about the rest okay?" Brooke knew that Haley hated being talked about and she wanted her to realize that it didn't mean anything at all, it was just gossip.

"You're right. I won't worry about anything besides him and me and being happy." Haley glanced towards the clock, "Speaking of being happy, Nathan will be here any minute to pick me up." Haley got off the bed and started gathering up her things.

"What are you two lovebirds doing tonight?"

"The usual, watching a movie at his house." Haley loved their "usual."

"I am still surprised that your parents let you go over there so much." Brooke and Haley had one thing in common, really strict parents. They both had super strict curfews and a lot of rules in regards to boys.

"Yeah, well, they know that his father is always home. But what they don't know is that his father is perfectly fine with us 'watching' all of these movies upstairs in Nathan's room, far away from supervision." Haley raised her eyebrows a little bit and Brooke caught her drift.

"You dog you. Making out with that hottie Nathan Scott, look how lucky you are."

Haley knew that Brooke was going to start in on one her teasing fests, but thankfully the sound of the doorbell interrupted them. "That must be Nathan. I'm going to run. I will call you tomorrow."

"You better, now go, have fun, make out. Tell me all about it." Brooke waved Haley away.

Haley walked towards the door, running her hands through her hair and smoothing out her outfit once more. She pulled open the door and was amazed at the sight before her.

"I thought that one month was definitely worth a rose." Nathan handed Haley a single, perfect, red rose.

"Thanks. One month, can you believe it?" Haley asked as she stepped out of Brooke's house.

"I know, it has been the best month of my life Haley, really." Nathan walked in front of Haley and opened her door for her. He then went around and got into his side. He started up his car and went to pull out of the driveway. "Here, I have something for you." Nathan handed Haley a gift bag.

"Oh Nathan, the rose was plenty. You didn't have to get me anything. I didn't get you anything." Haley felt a little guilty, not only did he know it was their one month anniversary, but he had gone to the trouble to get her a gift, and there was Haley, epty handed.

"I didn't get you something in hopes that you had gotten me something, I knew it was something you wanted, so I got it for you. End of story. Open it up."

Haley pulled out the card, it was cute, nothing overly sentimental. On the inside Nathan had written one simple sentence, 'One month already, thanks for putting up with me for this long.' It made Haley smile, it was just like Nathan, right to the point. Haley reached into the gift bag and pulled out a book, Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, Part III. Haley had been eyeing this book for weeks. "Oh Nathan, this is perfect. I have wanted this book for a while."

"I know, I saw it and wanted to give it to you. Enjoy it, and happy one month anniversary." Nathan slowed to a stop at a red light and leaned over and kissed Haley softly on the lips.

"Thanks, so much. So what is on the agenda for tonight?" Haley had just been assuming that they would go and watch a movie at Nathan's.

"I figured movie, at my house. I rented American Pie."

Haley thought that was a little odd, it was a fairly old and totally unromantic movie. "Why that movie? I am sure that we have both seen it a million times."

Nathan looked over at Haley and winked a little, then smirked, "I know, I didn't say we would watch it, I just said I rented it."


	9. Rumors

Chapter 9- Rumors

"Haley, I have heard some things, about Nathan. Things I think you need to know." Peyton hated to have to tell Haley the rumors but she knew that she had to, that is what best friends do, watch out for one another.

"Like what Pey? What's up?" Haley had an idea of what she was going to say. Things with her and Nathan were great, they had been together for almost two months and each day was better than the one before it.

"I have heard rumors that Nathan sells drugs." Peyton knew that was the only way to say it, to just spit it out. Put it out there so that they could talk about it.

"I was worried you would say that. I have heard stuff about that too. I don't know though, I have never seen sell any drugs, he has never mentioned it. Now that I think of it, I haven't even ever see him smoke pot. That wouldn't surprise me, so many people do it, but no, not even that." Haley had the sneaking suspicion that the rumors were true, but she just didn't want to believe it.

"Maybe he keeps that part of his life separate from you. If it was just one or two people who talked about it I might not believe it, but I have heard it a lot Haley, a real lot. I don't know, it makes me wonder. Have you talked to him about I at all?" Peyton knew that this had to be hard for Haley, she had fallen for Nathan, that was pretty obvious. Peyton could understand why she wouldn't want to believe it.

"No, I haven't mentioned it. This is a big deal Peyton, a really big deal. I haven't been able to gather up enough nerve to talk about it. I know I need to though, I know that I have to know if it is true. It's just, what if it is?" That was what Haley really dreaded, hearing Nathan say that it was true, that he sold drugs. That her boyfriend was a drug dealer. She shivered at the words, drug dealer.

"I guess that you can't really decide what you would do about it until you know if it is true or not. I mean, what if he says he isn't and you find out he is lying? I don't think that you could figure out how you would react in every possible situation with this. I think you just have to wait and see what happens. This is definitely something that you can't just let go though. This could seriously affect him, and you for that matter. I mean, what if he has drugs in his car when he is driving you somewhere? You can get in trouble for that. You have such a clean rep, such good grades, such a bright future, you can't put that on the line."

Haley bit her lip, something she always did when she was really contemplating something. "I know, all of that makes sense, it is just that this is the first big thing that we are going to have to deal with. Up until this point it has been smooth sailing, we haven't even had an argument. But this, this is definitely big. I think I am just scared that he will give me an answer that we can't work through. What do we do then?"

"You won't know until you ask. Do it, it will work out better in the end." Peyton nodded, letting Haley know that that was her last word, that was all she had to say about it.

"That's what I am going to do, I am going to ask. Tonight, when he calls, we will talk about it. God, I hope it goes okay."

ooooOoooo

"I have to ask you something Nathan." Haley and Nathan had been on the phone for almost an hour, talking about their days and work and just chit chatting, Haley had been avoiding the big stuff. She knew she couldn't do that anymore, she just had to get it over with.

"Sure, what's up Hales?" Nathan braced himself, he had a pretty good idea what she might be asking.

"I have heard some stuff, around school. And I kind of need to know whether or not it is true. It's hard for me to say, and I hope you don't get mad, but here goes. Nathan, do you sell drugs?" Haley held her breath, she half expected him to freak out on her or something.

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, it's just that everything has been going so well and I didn't want to put a damper on it. But yeah, I do sell drugs." Nathan had no idea how Haley would react, he was honestly surprised that it had gone this long without coming up. He was pretty well known for it around school. He was definitely the "go-to" guy.

"Like how frequently? What drugs? I just want to know what we are talking about here." Haley didn't know much about drugs, it wasn't something she had ever been involved with but she felt she deserved to know the details.

"It is pretty frequent. At least one deal a day usually. I sell mostly pot, but sometimes people ask for 'shrooms or cocaine and I can usually get my hands on it." Nathan knew it sounded pretty bad but he wanted to be up front about it all.

"Do you do these drugs too?" For some reason Haley dreaded this answer more, she didn't want her boyfriend to be a druggie.

"I do smoke pot, pretty regularly. I have done other drugs but it isn't an everyday thing. Since you and I have gotten together all I have done is smoke pot, nothing else."

Haley had to think for a minute. She knew that smoking pot was no big deal, so many people in their school did it. She could deal with him experimenting in the past with other stuff, lots of her friends had done that, but she really didn't want him to be doing all that other stuff regularly. "I kind of don't know what to say. I am glad you were honest with me Nathan, I really am. It means a lot to me that you didn't try and hide it once I asked." Haley had feared he would lie and then she would have to deal with that, that for her was a deal breaker. Once they started lying to each other, in her eyes, there was no point to staying together.

"I know that this is a lot to deal with, a lot to digest. I can't ask you to look past it. If you want to break up with me I understand." Nathan braced himself, he really hoped that that wasn't what this was going to come to.

"I think you know that I can't do that, that I can't break up with you. It is too late for that, I have fallen for you Nathan, fallen hard. As much as I don't like it I can't walk away because of it. But, I do want to set some ground rules."

"Okay, let's hear them."

"First, you won't do anything besides smoke pot in front of me. Pot doesn't bother me, any other drug does. I would rather you didn't do them, but that isn't my call to make. All I ask is that if you do you don't do it around me, and you do tell me about it. I don't want secrets Nathan, I am serious. And the drug dealing, I don't want to be involved in it at all. I also don't want to take a back seat to it, I don't want to feel as though that part of your life is more important than me. Does all that sound okay with you?" Haley held her breath, she knew she was asking a lot. She putting a lot of conditions into things.

"It is all fine with me. Let me just say, since we have started dating I have been selling less and less. I am trying to get out of it but it is hard. I won't lie, people count on me and it is really good money. It is hard to walk away from, but I am trying, it is a slow process but I do want to get out of it. I don't want it to come between us. I promise that it will stay separate from you, and you are always and will always be more important than selling drugs, I promise you that." Nathan could finally let out his breath, he had been holding it forever it seemed. He knew that this would be okay, he knew that Haley would work through this with him.

"I'm glad you don't think I am asking for too much. That is really important to me. Just know that we will deal with this all day by day, if things bother me or I feel uncomfortable I will tell you. I promise you that." Haley would see how she dealt with the reality of it, she wasn't quite sure how it would work out but she definitely wanted to try.

"Always tell me, always be open and honest with me. That is really important to me." Nathan knew he was really lucky, lucky to have a girl like Haley who was this understanding. "I have to get going Haley, I have to finish up a paper before I go to bed."

"Okay, no problem. I'll see you tomorrow, in the morning?" Nathan had been picking Haley up for school every morning since they had started dating. Haley loved it, it was like their time. She loved seeing him every morning before she started her day.

"Of course. And Haley, one more thing."

"Yeah?"

"I have fallen for you, hard. I didn't expect it, but there it is."


	10. Loving You

Chapter 10- Loving You

Things had been going well for Nathan and Haley, especially since she had confronted him about his "extracurricular activities." Nathan had kept his promise of not getting Haley involved in that part of his life. He had also kept his promise to not put that part of his life before Haley, she had never, not for one second, felt that the drugs came before her. All Haley could do was hang on to the hope that Nathan was really trying to wean himself away from all of it.

Normally something like this would have been a deal breaker for Haley. She was always against drugs and was shocked that she could look past that. The truth of the matter was, Haley was beginning to think that she was in love with Nathan. So when he told her about all of it she knew she couldn't just walk away, it wasn't that easy. Not liking that part of his life was not enough to make Haley feel any less in love with him.

Loving Nathan made Haley nervous. She was pretty sure that guys like Nathan didn't fall in love with girls like her. On second thought, she was pretty sure that guys like Nathan didn't fall in love, with anyone. Nathan had shown Haley a sensitive side that she was surprised to see. A sensitive side that Nathan was even more surprised he had. But that sensitivity came guarded. There were times that Nathan seemed as though he was going to really open up and feel, but then he would shut himself off. Haley was patient though, she never pushed him because she knew, deep down, how much Nathan cares for her.

Haley wasn't one to take leaps of faith, but with Nathan she couldn't help it. She wanted to keep her heart guarded but it was impossible, it was as though Nathan could knock down all of Haley's walls with just one look. She wasn't sure how he did, or even how much she liked it, but she did know was that when she stared into those baby blues of his it was all over for her.

ooooOoooo

"Ready to go Hales?" Nathan asked as he walked up to Haley's locker after school.

"Yeah, carry this for me?" Haley handed Nathan a text book. "Having you around really is useful. I hate carrying my own books." Haley teased as she leaned in and kissed Nathan softly on the lips.

"So what's on the agenda this afternoon?"

"Well, I have to get home by 5, but before that I am up for whatever. Why Mr. Scott, what did you have in mind?" Haley winked at Nathan.

"Well, since we won't get to see each other over Thanksgiving break at all, I figured we could grab a little alone time this afternoon. If that is okay with you of course."

"Sounds good to me." Haley took Nathan's outstretched hand and they headed towards the parking lot to leave school for the day.

Haley was a little disappointed that she would get to see Nathan over Thanksgiving break, but she was going with her parents to visit her sister Quinn in Virginia Beach, where she was for college. She had fought them to let her stay in town, with Brooke or Peyton, but she knew her parents would never give in. It wasn't often that Haley got to see her brothers and sister and she knew her parents would make her go, so she had decided to skip the complaining and just suck it up.

Nathan and Haley arrived at Nathan's house, grabbed a couple of sodas, and headed up to Nathan's room. In all of five minutes he was laying on top of Haley and the two were making out passionately. Haley began to pull away.

"What's going on Hales?"

"It's just that, we keep doing this. And it feels great, but there is something I have to tell you. It's something I don't think you will like." Haley bit her lip, now knowing what kind of reaction to expect from Nathan.

"Just tell me." Nathan knew that whatever it was, the two would be able to deal with it.

"I am a virgin. So, sometimes all of this makes me nervous. I had always thought that I would want to wait, but sometimes, when I am with you, I don't know how I could ever wait. When we aren't together though I think about it and know that I want to wait. I guess what I am trying to talk around is that I can't have sex with you Nathan, I am just not ready for that." Haley looked up at Nathan wondering what his response would be.

"I understand and respect that Haley, it is fine. I don't want to do anything that you aren't completely comfortable with, I don't want you to ever feel as though I am pushing you."

"I am grateful for that Nathan, and I never do feel like you are pushing me. I just want you to know that the whole thing does make me kind of nervous, and that I do want to take it slow." Haley paused for a minute, "We have never talked about this before Nathan, and I am curious. Are you a virgin?"

Nathan looked Haley deep in the eyes and confessed, "No, I'm not. I have slept with two people."

Haley wasn't surprised. Nathan was so popular, it made sense that he had experiences before her. She really didn't feel as though Nathan was upset about her wanting to wait though. She was so relieved, she had been worrying about this for a little while now.

"Hales, we won't do anything that doesn't feel okay to you. I promise." Nathan leaned down to kiss Haley again. He wrapped her around her tight.

They began feverishly making out again. Before long it was Nathan that pulled away from Haley.

"What's the matter Nathan?" Haley asked with a tone of worry in her voice, what if Nathan was still thinking about what she had said and he wasn't okay with it? What if Nathan didn't want to wait?

"It's just that, well, I love you Haley. I have never said that to anyone before. I have never felt this before, ever. The little things that have always mattered to me before don't mean anything to me now. Nothing makes me happier than being with you."

Haley looked at Nathan as a feeling of glee ran through her, she had been wondering about this for so long, and now, there it was, right in front of her. "I love you too Nathan."


	11. Putting Fear Aside

Chapter 11- Putting Fear Aside

"How are things with Nathan?" Peyton asked Haley while they were shopping at the mall one Saturday in early December.

"They are going really good. Speaking of him, I have no idea what to get him for Christmas. I swear it seems like the boy has everything." Nathan's father, Dan, is really well off. Their house is huge and has the best of everything. There is practically a television in every room. Haley knew that she had to get him something special, something that he wanted but didn't already have.

"I am sure we can figure something out." Peyton started towards a rack of jeans.

"Peyton, I need to ask you for a favor. I want to stay at Nathan's house tonight, his father is out of town, but my parents obviously won't let me, so I was hoping that I could say I am staying at your house." Haley looked expectantly at Peyton, she knew this was a huge favor to ask. Peyton didn't usually do things like this, not even for Haley or Brooke.

"I guess, Brooke was going to sleep over anyways. It's not like they would have any reason not to believe you after all, you do spend the night at my house all the time." Peyton raised her eyebrows at Haley, it was Peyton's judgmental look and Haley felt as though she had been getting that look a lot lately. "Are you having sex with him Haley?"

"No. That isn't what tonight is about. It is just the first night that we can spend together just hanging out, it really isn't a big deal. We will probably just watch movies and go in his hot tub, and just talk." Haley walked over to Peyton, "I do think about it though. Sleeping with him I mean. I really do. It scares me though."

"Haley, I don't know about this one. I don't think that I am the best one to give you advice, seeing as how I am still a virgin too. And if you had asked me months ago I would have told you to wait, definitely. But I don't know, Nathan loves you, that is obvious so I guess just follow your heart. If it says to wait then wait. What scares you though?"

Haley was shocked at Peyton's comments, absolutely shocked. She would expect something like this from Brooke, but Peyton, definitely not. "I don't know, that it will change things. Or that that is all he wants from me, and when he gets it he will dump me."

"Haley I don't think that any of that will happen. But like I said, follow your heart. You don't want to rush into this and then regret it later. Take your time, he will wait, I know he will. It will work out Haley."

ooooOoooo

"So what movie is up next?" Nathan asked as he walked towards the DVD player.

"I don't know, how about How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days? I know it is a chick flick, but the last two movies we watched were ones you picked." Haley gave Nathan her puppy dog face.

"Not fair! You know I can't resist that face. Fine, fine, we will watch your chick flick." Nathan popped in the DVD and then laid back down next to Haley. It amazed Nathan, that look could make Nathan do just about anything.

"Well that if very nice of you." Haley rolled over on top of Nathan and began to kiss him lightly. Nathan began to explore Haley's mouth with his tongue. When she started to caress his lips with her tongue Nathan knew that is was okay to let his hands explore her body.

Nathan began to run his hands down Haley's stomach and when he got to the bottom of her shirt he started to push it up. Haley arched her back letting Nathan know that it was okay if he took it off. He pulled her up to a sitting position and she raised her arms above her head, with that Nathan peeled off her shirt. She laid back down and Nathan followed her. He lowered the left cup of her pink lace bra and took her breast in his mouth. He heard her pull in a quick breath and he knew that she was enjoying herself. As he bit lightly at her nipple he started to lower the straps of her bra so that he could give equal attention to her right breast. When he nipped at that one he heard Haley moan a little and that made him pull her close as his hands ventured to the hook on her bra. He struggled for a minute but then felt it click loose. He began to pull it off and watched in wonder as her breasts burst from the confining lace.

Haley reached down towards the bottom of Nathan's t-shirt and kissed him feverishly as she pulled it up. She only stopped kissing him for one second while she lifted his shirt over his head. Nathan's hands began venturing lower, he rubbed his hand up Haley's thigh and underneath her skirt. The feel of her lacy panties made him grow harder. "Haley we can stop, jut say when." He looked down towards her.

"Tell me you love me Nathan."

"I love you Haley." Nathan stared deep into her brown eyes as he said it.

"Then make love to me, please. We have waited long enough already."

"Are you absolutely sure that this is what you want?" Nathan didn't want to force Haley into anything, make her do anything that she wasn't completely comfortable with.

"I am positive." With that Haley's hands began to fumble with the button on Nathan's jeans. She finally got it undone and lowered his fly. She could feel his hardness spring out against her belly. Nathan stood up off the bed and stepped out of his jeans. He leaned over Haley and pulled down her skirt. He hardened more at the sight of her lying there in nothing more than her pink lacy panties. He turned around and walked towards his dresser, he opened the top drawer and rustled around a little. As he turned to walk back towards the bed Haley could see the square foil package in his hand. She felt a little nervous but knew that she was doing was the right thing for her.

Nathan stepped out of his boxers before he lowered himself on top of Haley once again. He kissed down her neck and then trailed kisses down her abdomen. He could feel her tighten as his lips edged towards the top of her panties. He lowered them down and he could feel her push them off. She opened her legs to him and he lowered his mouth to her center. He explored her most intimate place with his tongue, and as he flicked it against Haley's most sensitive spot her could hear her moan. He continued until her breathing indicated that she was ready for him.

Nathan raised himself to his knees and tore open the foil package, he threw it to the floor and unrolled the condom on his throbbing member. He laid back down and guided himself towards her. Haley took a deep breath as Nathan started to ease himself into her, as he did he looked her right in the eyes. He could see that she was a little scared to he paused, knowing that he would soon hit some resistance. "Don't stop Nathan, please, don't stop."

Hearing that Nathan pushed slowly deeper into her, as he did she flinched in pain but he could feel her loosen up. He could tell that the pain had subsided as the look on her face was one of sheer pleasure. As Nathan began to move himself in and out of her she started to move her hips more and more quickly against him. As though Haley was a seasoned pro she wrapped her legs around Nathan pulling him deeper inside of her. He could feel her nails dig into her back and knew that she was almost there. Then he felt it, he felt her shake against him and call out his name, in a voice deeper than he had ever heard her use before. With that he knew that she was there and he could release, he gave one last thrust and then let himself succumb to the pleasure.

They laid there for a few minute and then Nathan rolled off Haley, he got off the bed and headed towards the trash can. A few seconds later he crawled back into bed with Haley, he wrapped his arms around her right. "Are you okay Hales?"

Haley turned towards him and pulled herself closer, "I am fine, I am wonderful in fact. That was amazing, I am glad we waited, but I am glad we didn't wait any longer. Thank you Nathan, that as incredible."

Nathan rolled onto his back and Haley laid her head on his chest, the two fell asleep just like that, in on another's arms.


	12. Nothing's Perfect

**Author's note: **Thanks guys for the reviews. They have increased, but still not as much as I had hoped, but oh well. Some small drama fires up in this chapter but in about two more it really gets nuts, so keep reading. I know that this has been slow to pick up, but the relationship between Nathan and Haley and the circumstances surrounding that relationship really needed to be established before I could bring in the good stuff. A special thanks to Ange for reading this and reviewing, she is an amazing writer and gave me some great tips. I have already tried to use them in this chapter. Enjoy!

**Manydreams: **Thanks for the review! I had made a decision when I started this story to have the central friendship be between the three girls, that is why Lucas had only appeared in one chapter in the beginning. But, your review was time perfectly because Lucas will be making an appearance.

Chapter 12- Nothing's Perfect

"Hey Tim, how's it going?" Haley asked as Tim walked up to the end of her register to bag for her. Things had been a little awkward between the two right after their break up, or whatever you could call it, but the weirdness had quickly ended. Haley had felt like she should have discussed her and Nathan dating with Tim, but Nathan said that it wasn't necessary, that he had already talked to Tim and cleared the air. Haley knew that there was no point in further meddling in their friendship, especially when Nathan advised her against it.

"Not too much Haley. How's Nathan?"

"He's fine. Thanks. He actually dropped me off at work a little bit ago." Haley usually thought it best to avoid the topic of her relationship with Nathan around Tim, but sine he was the one to broach the topic she figured she should at least respond.

"It's pretty early though, it isn't like Nathan to get up so early just to take someone to work." Tim raised an eyebrow at Haley.

Haley knew what Tim was insinuating. "Yeah, well I stayed there last night, so it really wasn't a big deal." As soon as the words escaped her mouth she wished she could grab them back. Haley wanted to get out of this conversation as soon as possible, she was really uncomfortable with the direction it was heading.

"Stayed there…hmmm. Guess he won then." Tim raised an eyebrow at Haley and then focused his attention back to the groceries he was supposed to be bagging.

"Won what?" Haley felt a bad feeling forming deep in her stomach, she knew that whatever Tim was going to say next, Haley wasn't going to like it.

"Well, back when Nathan and I first met you we knew about your rep, how you were a goody two shoes and all." Tim smirked at Haley. "And well we both thought you were hot but knew you were a challenge. Well, I said that it would be me, The Tim, who would get you to cave. It was me who was going to give the tutor a little tutoring, if you know what I mean." Tim chuckled at his own attempt at humor. "Nathan said there was no chance in hell of that, that you would sleep with him first. I'm guessing that he won."

The bad feeling that had been forming in Haley's stomach quickly turned to fury. "Nathan didn't win anything. Just because I stayed there doesn't mean anything happened." Haley looked at Tim right in the eyes, "I think it would be best if you went and helped someone else."

As Tim walked away Haley had to fight away the tears. She couldn't believe it, this was all a bet? All of this with Nathan, just a challenge to see who could sleep with her first, she couldn't believe it. And how did Tim know? Did Nathan tell him? What, did Nathan call Tim the second Nathan dropped her off at work? Haley glanced at the clock, three more hours to go. She couldn't wait to get out and talk to someone.

Who would she talk to though? Brooke was such a huge fan of Nathan these days that that she probably wouldn't get the severity of this. She would chalk it up to a big misunderstanding. Haley knew that if she discussed this with Peyton, Peyton would never trust Nathan again, not that Haley was sure she herself would be able to. Peyton was always a hard one to impress, she would feed off of something like this. One bad thing and she would just go off on one of her rants about how all boys suck. That was the last thing she wanted, to sit through one of Peyton's angry rants.

Then Haley realized that there was only one person that could help her through this one.

ooooOoooo

"Hales, this is a surprise, come on in."

"Thanks, I need to talk to you."

"Sure, what's going on?" Lucas reached behind Haley to shut the door.

"I'm sorry to bother you it's just that, I didn't know who else to talk to." Haley couldn't get one more word out without crying.

Lucas hated to see his friend upset and he pulled her into his arms. "Hales, Hales, buddy, talk to me. What's going on?"

"It's Nathan. I found out something today. Something terrible." Haley managed to choke out in between sobs.

"Why don't you take a deep breath Haley, I'll go and get you some water, and some tissues. I'll be right back." Lucas was never good at dealing with crying girls, especially Haley. She was his closet girl friend and he just hated to see her hurting.

Haley sat there trying to calm herself while Lucas scurried around getting water and tissues, he walked back into the room and Haley seemed to have collected herself a little.

"Sorry, I've just had this bottled up inside me all morning."

"What Hales, what's going on? What did Nathan do?"

"Okay, I was at work and Tim was there. He was bagging for me. He said that when he and Nathan first met me they had kind of a bet to see who was going to sleep with me first. Can you believe that? All of this had been a bet. I really thought that he cared about me, I thought he loved me. But now, I find out this. I don't know what to do." Haley started to sob again.

"Hales, calm down. I am sure that it isn't what it seems like." Lucas handed Haley a tissue. "Nathan isn't a close friend or anything, but I've seen the way he is around you. I've seen the way he looks at you. That look he gets Haley, it isn't something you can fake. He loves you Haley, I know that." Lucas looked towards Haley, he saw a little smile forming behind all of those tears. "Have you asked him about this?"

With that question Haley's smile disappeared and more tears began to fall. "No, I haven't. I came here right from work. I didn't want to freak out on Nathan." Haley took a few deep breaths before she continued. "I just didn't know what to do Lucas, I was so surprised to hear this."

"You have to remember that Tim might have some harsh feelings about how everything went down with the two of you. Tim is kind of a different type of person to start with, I don't know how much stock you can take in the stuff he says. Just talk to Nathan, that's all you can do. But just remember what I said, I can see it when he looks at you, that boy loves you."

Haley began to smile through her tears. "Thanks Lucas. I really needed that. You are always there for me when I really need it. I really appreciate that." Haley was kind of surprised that Lucas was so insistent on the fact that he knew Nathan really cared about Haley, obviously Haley could feel it, but having Lucas say it just reinforced it. She knew that all she could do was confront him about it and hope that this wasn't what it seemed.

"That's what friends are for. Now, do you want a ride over to Nathan's?"

"Yeah, I do. Thanks." Haley began to stand up.

Lucas walked over to grab his coat and then walked over to Haley, "Aw, come here buddy." He pulled her into another hug, "It'll all be okay Hales. Just talk to him, hear his side of things."


	13. What's The Deal?

Chapter 13- What's the Deal?

Haley stood on Nathan's front porch for a few minutes before letting herself in. She had knocked but it was rare that anyone ever heard the door. As she climbed the stairs to Nathan's room her nervousness increased. She tried to fully collect herself, she didn't want him to see her cry. After talking to Lucas Haley felt a little better, but she was still worried as to what Nathan would have to say about all this. She just wanted it to not be true, she didn't want everything that had happened between her and Nathan to have been a lie.

"Nathan?" Haley called as she lightly knocked on the door, after hearing no response she began to open it slowly.

Nathan was there in bed, fast asleep. Truth be told they hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.

"Nathan, wake up." Haley stroked his hair a little.

"Hales, what's up? How did you get here?" Nathan asked groggily.

"Lucas dropped me off. I have to talk to you about something."

"Sure, what's going on?" Nathan sat up and rubbed his eyes, Haley's tear stained cheeks and red eyes told Nathan that whatever Haley wanted to talk about was a pretty big deal.

"I was at work and Tim told me something." Haley took a deep breath, fighting back her tears, realizing it was hopeless she stopped fighting it and let them fall. "He said that when you first met me you had a little bet going to see who would sleep with me first." Haley looked at Nathan, his eyes had widened in shock. "Is that all this has been Nathan? Some kind of bet?" Haley crossed her arms over her chest and waited for an answer.

"I won't lie to you Haley. We did say something to that effect when we first met you, but once it was said it was done. We didn't mention it again, I honestly never gave it a second thought. To be totally honest with you, I knew, the minute that I saw you, that you and I were going to be something great. Not just some little romp in the sack, but something serious. When I finally got up the guts to ask you out the last thing I had in mind was sleeping with you. You have to believe me Hales. That was my last intention. I never wanted to do anything that you weren't completely comfortable with. You know that."

"Why would you even say something like that to begin with Nathan?"

"I don't know, it was dumb, just a guy thing." Nathan thought for a minute, "And it wasn't a bet Hales. It was just a passing comment. You have never been a bet to me, I swear."

"You mean it?" Haley asked, still crying.

"I mean it. Haley, I love you. I did say that to Tim, and it was so stupid. But you and me, it was never about that. With you and me the last thing this is about is sex. I promise you that. You need to believe me Haley, I love you, so much. I wouldn't do anything to hurt you. Tim on the other hand, I am definitely going to hurt him. He had no reason to tell you this, it was a passing comment, it wasn't important." Nathan started to look angry.

"I know you love me Nathan, this just really freaked me out. You have proven to me that this wasn't about sex, really you have. I just got all fogged up when I heard this. I'm sorry Nathan, I shouldn't have accused you of anything like this." Haley sat down on the bed next to Nathan.

"You definitely aren't the one who should be apologizing. Just know that I love you Hales, don't ever forget that." Nathan moved aside in his bed, "Now get in here and take a nap with me."

Haley peeled off her coat and stepped out of her shoes and crawled into bed next to him. Nathan immediately wrapped his arms around Haley and a feeling of safety wash over her, she knew that her and Nathan, they were going to be just fine. Haley knew she had to believe Nathan. He hadn't ever done anything but treat her right. Boys would be boys, they sometimes said the most ridiculous things.

Closing her eyes Haley let her worries drift from her mind as she fell into a deep sleep.

ooooOoooo

"The Tim, talk to me."

"Seriously Tim, why do you answer your phone like that? It is so stupid." Nathan wasn't in any mood for times games right now.

"Jeez, sorry man. What flew up your ass and died?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe that you almost screwed up things for me and Haley big time."

"Chill out man. I was only being honest with her."

"There wasn't any reason for her to know what we said. It was like ages ago. It didn't mean anything. You had her thinking that it was some big bet that we had made." Nathan was furious with Tim, not only had he caused an unnecessary bump in Nathan and Haley's relationship, but he had hurt Haley. Nathan never wanted to see her hurting.

"Dude, I never said it was a bet."

"Okay Tim, that makes it all better." Nathan's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Wake up Tim, I don't care exactly what you said, I care that you said anything about this to begin with. I had nearly forgotten about it."

"I don't get what the big deal is. Did she forgive you?"

"Yeah she did, but that isn't the point. The point is that you said something to Haley that you knew would do nothing but hurt her. Why did you do that Tim? Are you jealous of us or something?"

"Am I jealous of you and Haley? Of course I am. Haley's a great girl and I couldn't hang onto her. And you, well you always get all the girls. Maybe I was sick of it, maybe I was sick of you getting the great relationship with the great girl, and here I am single and horny." Tim was embarrassed to admit these things to Nathan.

"Maybe I have a great girl because I treat her right. Face it Tim, you aren't so good at treating girls right."

Tim couldn't believe Nathan had said that. Nathan was usually such a dick to girls. "You usually aren't either."

"Yeah well it is different with Haley. I want to treat her right, I never want to see her hurting, and especially because of something I did. The way I treated girls before was wrong Tim, that was why none of them stuck around very long." Nathan hated to admit it, but he had been terrible to girls before. He hooked up with them just for the satisfaction of upping his number, he never cared about them. It had all been a big game to him, until Haley came along.

"I get it Nathan. I see your point. I shouldn't have said anything to Haley, I know how much you like her and I shouldn't have messed with that." Tim paused for a minute, knowing that he was about to say was going to come out sappy sounding, "I'm glad you are happy with her Nathan, I really am. I guess I just get jealous of her sometimes, you spend so much time with her. Come on man, don't you miss your Tim time?"

"Keep saying things like Tim time and I really won't want to hang out with you." Nathan laughed out loud, it felt good to break the serious mood for a second. "Seriously though, I know that things are different now Tim. I do realize that I have been spending a lot of time with Haley and I will make more time for you and I to do stuff, like we used to. Just don't go around messing with Haley because you are upset with me, okay?"

"Yeah man, sorry about that. I am glad she forgave you though. I will apologize to her next time I see her. I won't mess with her anymore. Sorry man."

"It's okay dude. Just be more careful, I make enough mistakes to screw this thing up on my own, I don't need your help." Nathan looked down at his watch, "I have to run man, I have a little business to take care of and then I have to get to work. I'll talk to you later." Tim knew about Nathan's little side venture and had always been cool about it, he had even set up Nathan with some new customers.

"Got ya, later man."


	14. Under The Mistletoe

**Author's note: **I will give a warning, this chapter is kind of corny, but totally necessary to show just how much Nathan cares about Haley. This chapter gets into his head more than others so I needed it. Bear with me, and hopefully you will think it's at least a little cute!

Chapter 14- Under the Mistletoe

Nathan was on his way to pick up Haley so they could celebrate their first Christmas together. He was anxious to give her the gift that he had spent so much time picking out. This was the first year that he actually had someone important to shop before, besides his family. Had hadn't ever had a serious girlfriend at Christmas time before and he was thrilled that Haley was the first.

For a guy that everyone thought so much experience, Haley sure had given Nathan a lot of firsts. Haley was the first girl to kiss Nathan and make him go weak in the knees. She was his first love. She was the first girl he ever made love too. He was the first girl that he met who he dreamt about every night, and who he thought about as soon as he woke up every morning. Nathan loved Haley with all his heart, she had done so much for him and he rarely expressed that to her. It was because of that that he wanted to give her just the right gift.

Pulling into her driveway Nathan started to fill with anticipation, he knew that Christmas was Haley's favorite holiday and he couldn't wait to share it with her.

Nathan rang the doorbell and waited for her to answer. Moments later he heard footsteps approaching the door.

"Hey Nathan. Merry Christmas." Haley broke out into a huge grin. "Come on in. My mom set us aside some Christmas cookies in the living room."

"Merry Christmas to you too Hales." Nathan said as he stepped into her house. He quickly understood why this was her favorite holiday, her family went all out. There were decorations everywhere, but not tacky ones. He peered into the living room and was wowed by the sight of their Christmas tree. It was tall and meticulously decorated, complete with a glowing angel on top.

Nathan took off his coat and hung it up then went to follow Haley into the living room. She paused in the door way and pointed up, "Mistletoe."

Nathan pulled Haley close to him and kissed her softly. "It's a shame that mistletoe is only around once a year." Nathan winked at Haley as he released her.

Haley walked into the living room and bent down below the tree, grabbing out a few perfectly wrapped gifts. She led Nathan over to the couch, "You first."

Nathan opened up the card and read Haley's heartfelt words;

_Nathan, For years I wished that for Christmas I would get the boy of my dreams. This Christmas all of those years of wishing have finally paid off. My life has been better since the moment I met you. You have been more than I could ask for and more than I could have ever dreamed of. I love you Nathan, Merry Christmas Hales_

Reading those words, knowing that he was more than she could have ever dreamed of, made Nathan's eyes well up a little bit. He tried his best to be good to her and to treat her right, her words were validation that he was doing a good job.

Picking up the first present he unwrapped it and pulled out a pair of Christmas boxers. "Aw Hales, thanks." Normally Nathan may snicker to himself about a gift like this, but because they were from Haley he would remember this day, their first Christmas together, every time he put them on.

"I hope you like them, I had a really hard time picking out your gifts."

"They are great Haley, thanks." Nathan picked up the next package. His eyes widened once all the paper was torn off and the box was opened. It was the watch he had been eyeing months ago when they were at the mall. "Hales, this is too much."

"Not it isn't Nathan. It really isn't. I saw you looking at it months ago so I saved up for it. I really want you to have it."

"I love it, thank you so much Haley." Nathan leaned over and kissed her. "Now your turn."

Nathan first handed her a card. She opened it and was silent as she read his words;

_Haley's Christmas Poem_

_We never thought it would happen,_

_But we gave it a try._

_You were a sweet little girl,_

_And I was a drug dealing guy._

_The first time I saw you_

_I knew you were it for me_

_My sweet angel from heaven_

_That had brought just for me._

_Your brown eyes sparkled_

_Your sweet smile lit up your face_

_My knees started to tremble,_

_And my heart joined in the race._

_It was the best feeling_

_Like no other before._

_So I looked up again,_

_Because I needed some more._

_An angel before me_

_Sparking from head to feet_

_And I knew you were the one_

_Who would make me complete._

_What I needed in my life,_

_Was a warm, gentle touch_

_And that is the story_

_Of how you became the one I love so much._

_Merry Christmas Haley, thanks for all that you have done for me._

"Oh Nathan, that's the most beautiful poem. I can't believe you wrote that."

"With inspiration as incredible as you it wasn't that hard." Nathan handed her the gift and anxiously waited as she opened it.

"Oh my god, Nathan, it is gorgeous." Haley slowly pulled the white gold XOX bracelet with a small diamond in each of the Os out of the box. It was by far the nicest piece of jewelry she had ever been given. "It's perfect. Can you hook it on me?"

Haley handed Nathan the bracelet. He hooked it on her delicate wrist and then took her hand so he could better see his wrist. "It looks perfect. I'm glad you like it, I spent a lot of time picking it out."

"I do love it, it is just perfect." Haley wrapped her arms around Nathan, "Thank you Nathan, for making this the best Christmas ever."


	15. Resolutions

**Author's note:** This chapter is kind of short but sets up the next few. I am really anxious for the next chapter because it is where the proverbial sht hits the fan, so, as soon as I get two reviews, yes only two reviews, I will post the next chapter.

Chapter 15- Resolutions

Haley and Nathan were on their way over to Brooke's to ring in the New Year with Haley's friends. They had debated spending this night celebrating with Nathan's friends, but they partied hard and Nathan really didn't want to subject Haley to all of that. He knew that it would be too much for her, that she would be uncomfortable.

"Should we pick up anything to bring to Brooke's?" Nathan looked over at Haley. She looked hot tonight in a short black skirt and knee high boots. She had curled her hair and it fell softly over her shoulders.

"No, her parents love this stuff, they always have than enough food and stuff." Haley started leafing through Nathan's cd's, she grimaced at parts of his collection. The two young lovers definitely did not share a taste in music. Haley glanced over at Nathan when his cell phone rang.

"Hello." Nathan nodded a few times. "Okay, well, now really isn't a good time for me." He nodded some more, "I know, listen, I'll call you back later." Nathan glanced at Haley praying she wouldn't ask questions.

"Who was that?"

"Umm, no one. It's not important." Nathan choked out.

"Was it, um, someone you sell to? You can tell me Nathan." Haley reached her hand over and placed it on his thigh.

"Kind of." Nathan hoped he wouldn't regret this, "It was my guy, my supplier. One of the guys I sell to asked for something I didn't have and wasn't sure I could get. Well, my guy got some for me. He was just disappointed because it costs a lot and I can't go and get it tonight."

"Oh." Haley looked down at her lap and thought for a minute. Nathan had been so good at keeping this part of his life separate from her, she supposed that this one time she could bend. "We don't have to be at Brooke's for like another hour, is that enough time?"

"Haley what are you saying?"

"I'm saying lets do whatever you need to do Nathan. Just this once, it's okay with me. After all, you gave up celebrating with your friends to celebrate with mine. It's okay, let's go."

"If you're absolutely sure Haley."

"I am, it's no big deal."

Nathan thought for another moment and then pulled into a driveway to turn around. He headed over to a side of town that Haley was surprised she was familiar with, she figured stuff like this only happened in like the bad part of town of something. But in reality, her ex boyfriend Jeff lived over near here.

Minutes later Nathan pulled into a driveway. "We're here." Nathan started to get out of the car and then paused, turning to Haley, "Come in, I don't want you to sit and freeze in the car. You can wait in the family room while we go and do our business in his bedroom." Nathan got out of the car and walked over to Haley's side and opened her door, holding out his hand to help her out.

"Are you sure it's okay if I come in? I don't want to cause a problem or anything." Haley asked uncertainly as she started to get out.

"I'm positive, I won't have you sitting out here freezing."

Together they walked up towards the door. Nathan knocked and a few minutes later a guy opened the door. "Haley, this is Pete."

"Hi." Haley recognized him from school. She had never met him before or anything, but she had seen him around.

"Hi Haley, nice to meet you." Pete shook her hand. "Let's go and get this done Nathan."

"I'll be right back babe." Nathan said as he exited the room.

Haley sat there, surprised that Pete was so nice and polite. He shook her hand and everything. Haley took a deep breath and waited for Nathan to come back so they could go. It felt a little weird to her, knowing that Nathan was in the other rooms buying drugs that they would deliver. A year ago she never would have thought that she would be doing this, waiting for her boyfriend to buy drugs.

"Thanks man, I appreciate you coming up with this." Nathan was walking down the hallway back towards Haley. "I'm all set, we can go Hales."

Haley stood up and Nathan took her hand and guided them towards the door.

"Bye Haley, it was nice to meet you." Pete said as he opened the door for them.

"You too Pete. Have a good night." With that Nathan and Haley headed towards the door.

"Sorry about that Hales, just one more stop then we can head out. This one will be quick I promise."

A little while later Haley and Nathan pulled into Brooke's driveway. Haley let them into the house and they headed down towards the basement. All of Haley's friends were down there watching a movie, some of the guys were playing pool over in the corner. Nathan kissed Haley on the top of her head and then headed over to join in the pool game. Haley headed over to her friends watching the movie.

A few hours later midnight was nearing. Brooke had disappeared upstairs a few minutes ago and returned with a couple of bottles of champagne. "I grabbed it when my parents weren't looking." Brooke always was the one getting them alcohol, and usually from her parents, they threw many parties and their bar was always fully stocked.

Brooke poured everyone a glass as they gathered around the television awaiting the countdown to midnight.

"5…4…3…2…1…HAPPY NEW YEAR!" Everyone yelled at once.

Nathan pulled Haley close and kissed her deeply. "Happy New Years Haley."

"Happy New Years to you too." Haley rose up to kiss Nathan again. "Making any resolutions this year?"

"Actually I am and I wanted to talk to you about it." Nathan led Haley over to a couch in a quiet corner of the basement.

"Sure, what's up Nathan?"

"I am making a resolution, to make some changes in my life. Mainly, I'm going to stop selling drugs. I told Pete tonight, that was my last deal. I'm done Haley." Nathan looked her right in the eyes as he told her the news.

"Wow, this is huge. What made you decide this?"

"You. I want to be better for you Haley, you don't deserve to be with someone who does that. I decided this a little while ago and had been planning on telling you tonight. I'm done with it, for good."

Haley was speechless, "That means a lot to me, it really does. That was always something that I had a hard time dealing with so instead of dealing I just chose to accept it and pretend it wasn't there. This is great Nathan. Thank you, it means a lot to me that you're giving up something like this for me."

"I would do anything to make you happy Haley." Nathan wrapped his arms around Haley, hoping that getting out would be as easy as that.


	16. It All Comes Crashing Down

Chapter 16- It All Comes Crashing Down

Looking at her watch Haley was started to get nervous. Nathan was never late picking her up for school. He knew how important it was to Haley to be at school on time.

Looking out the window she gazed up and down the street, hoping that his blazer would come racing into view, that he would hop out apologizing profusely for making her late. But minutes passed and still, no Nathan.

Haley headed over to the phone and dialed his house, maybe he had overslept or something.

With each ring Haley's worry increased. Finally his sister picked up. "Hello."

"Hi, it's Haley. Is Nathan there?"

"No, he left a while go for school. Why, hasn't he picked you up yet?"

"No, he hasn't. Are you sure he left on time?"

"Yep, he was actually a little early. Sorry Haley." With that Nathan's sister hung up.

Haley's worry increased ten fold, she wondered what was wrong. She hoped he hadn't been in an accident or anything like that.

Grabbing her books and purse she headed towards the door, thank goodness she only lived 15 minutes walking distance from the school.

The whole way to school Haley listened intently behind her, hoping to hear his blazer roar up behind her. But no matter how hard she strained, the noise never came. Nathan never came.

Bursting through the door to school Haley was thankful to have orchestra that morning, her teacher loved her and wouldn't mark her down for tardiness. She rushed to class and got herself situated.

About ten minutes later a senior girl that Haley kind of knew walked in and looked at Haley. 'What happened to Nathan?' She mouthed across the room.

'What do you mean?' At that moment Haley wished she was better at reading lips, she never had been good at it.

'Pulled over…cops…pulled out of car.' Was all Haley got. With that her worry mounted to epic proportions.

She wondered if it could be, if her worst fear was coming true. What if it was a drug bust? He said he was getting out though, he said he wasn't going to do it anymore. Haley was so confused.

Somehow Haley made it through the first half of the day. Sure, she didn't pay any attention in any of her classes, but at least she didn't lose it. She was going out of her mind with the possibilities.

Rushing to the lunch room she hoped for answers. Forgetting any insecurities that she had she walked right over to the table where Nathan's friends ate lunch. Three of his buddies were already there, surely they knew something.

"Haley, hey, I've been hearing stuff all day, what happened?" Nathan's friend Jake asked.

"I don't know, I was hoping you guys knew something. All I knew is that he didn't pick me up this morning, didn't call or anything. And now he hasn't showed up to school at all." Haley took a deep breath, "People have been saying things. That he got pulled over and thrown up against his car this morning. Do you know anything about that?"

All three boys shook their heads negatively, Jake spoke up again, "None of us know anything, that's all we have heard too."

"Do you think that it was a drug bust?" Haley prayed their answer would be no.

Again Jake answered her, "I don't Haley, it's a possibility though. Try not to worry about it, I'm sure he will call you as soon as he can and let you know."

"Yeah right, not worry." Haley started to walk away, "Thanks guys." _For nothing_, she thought under her breath.

Walking towards her own group of friends she prayed that Brooke would be there. Brooke didn't have the same scheduled lunch period as Haley, but she was pretty sure that if her friend had heard the rumors she would fake sick or something to be there for Haley. As luck would have it, Brooke was there.

"Oh my god Haley, are you okay?" Brooke cried out as she ran towards Haley, wrapping her arms around her tightly.

"No, I'm not." Haley couldn't hold it in anymore, she burst out crying. "I just don't know what happened Brooke, but it doesn't sound good, not at all. They are saying that Nathan got pulled out of his car and handcuffed. I'm freaking out, I have been all day."

"Do you think…?" Brooke trailed off, not wanting to say it.

Haley knew what she was insinuating, she searched for her words but could find none, all she did was nod.

"Okay well, we don't know for sure yet. It could be anything, it could even be a mistake." Brooke tried to sound convincing, not only for Haley, but also for herself.

"I do, I know for sure. What else could it be? I just can't believe it Brooke, he told me he was getting out. Last week, on New Year's, he told me that he was done with it, done with it all. How could he lie to me?" Haley sobbed harder. "I really thought I could trust him."

"Hey now Haley, you don't know that he lied to you. Why don't you deal with one thing at a time? Wait until you talk to him and can find out what happened, until then don't start jumping to conclusions, okay?"

"Yeah, you're right." Haley took a deep breath to calm herself. "How did this happen Brooke? How did I get myself involved in something like this?"

"You can't help who you fall in love with Haley, you just can't."

ooooOoooo

Haley somehow managed to make it through the rest of the day. She raced home and dialed his number. It rang a few times and the machine picked up. She frantically dialed his cell phone, but there was no answer on that either.

Haley was really starting to lose it. Glancing at the clock she realized her mother would be home any minute, she definitely didn't want to talk to her right now. She didn't want to let her know what she thought was going on. The last thing she wanted her mom to know was that Nathan got pulled over on the way to school and it could possibly be a drug bust. Her mom would love that.

Haley ran up to her room, barely missing her mother. Cranking up her music she laid down on her bed with the phone in hand, willing it to ring.

Finally, more than an hour later, the phone finally rang. Haley answered it before it even rang a full ring.

"Hello?"

"Haley, it's me."


	17. Remembering

**Author's note: **Flashback sequences are written in italics. Thanks for the reviews, all of your questions should be answered in this chapter…enjoy…and review!

Chapter 17- Remembering

"Haley, it's me."

The tone in Nathan's voice was one she hadn't ever heard before. He sounded miserable. "What's going on Nathan? I've been so worried about you."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I couldn't call." Nathan paused for a minute, "I got arrested this morning Haley. For drug dealing."

"Oh Nathan. How bad is it?"

"Four felonies and a misdemeanor."

"Wow, that is bad." Haley couldn't believe her ears. "What happens now?" Haley heard some racket in the background, as though Nathan had covered the mouth piece with his hand.

"Sorry Haley, I have to go. My arraignment is in like 10 minutes so I have to meet with my lawyer. But I'll explain everything tomorrow. My dad made bail so I'll be at school and everything. I'll pick you up, just like always, I promise you that. I love you Haley."

Haley stood there listening to the dial tone in her ear. She couldn't believe what he said. She couldn't even believe it. Nathan, arrested, in jail, it was too much to handle.

Lying back on her bed she knew all she could do was wait until tomorrow. That and hope and pray that her parents didn't find out.

ooooOoooo

The next morning Haley was brushing her teeth when the phone rang. Her heart literally stopped beating, she worried it would be Nathan with more bad news. She ran for the phone, before she could even say anything an angry voice started in.

"Haley Elizabeth James you have some explaining to do."

Haley's heart leapt into her throat, her mom couldn't possibly know, could she? "Mom, what's going on?" Haley asked, trying to sound clueless.

"Well, I was sitting in the break room with the girls, enjoying my morning coffee. We're all watching the news when a picture of Nathan pops up on the screen. Now this wasn't just any picture Haley, this was a mug shot! It seems that that little boyfriend of yours has been arrested for drug dealing."

"Mom…"

Haley's mom interrupted her daughter, "Don't say a word. I don't know if you knew about this and chose not to tell me and your father, or if you have no idea, but you don't sound too shocked to me so I am guessing it is the former. Now listen to me Haley, you will come straight home from school today, your father and I will be waiting for you. I expect you in the door not a minute after 2:30." With that Haley's mom hung up.

Haley knew she was in for it. Her parents were really big on keeping the communication lines open. Truth be told, Haley had never even considered telling her parents this one, never in a million years. They never would have let her keep seeing him. They probably wouldn't now.

Fighting back tears Haley headed downstairs, hearing Nathan's blazer pull into her driveway she grabbed her books and headed out the door.

As soon as she opened the door the saw Nathan walking towards her. He pulled her into a hug and they both started to cry.

Nathan had never cried in front of anyone before, not even his mother, and now here he was crying in front of Haley. He couldn't believe it, hell, he couldn't believe anything that had happened the day before.

_Nathan hit eject on the CD player, pulling out his 50 cent CD he slid in a Dave Matthews Band CD, one of Haley's favorites. As he leaned back he saw that the car was still behind him. This car had been following him since he pulled out his neighborhood. Figuring it was just someone else on their way to school he ignored it, trying to shake the feeling in the pit of his stomach that something was wrong._

_It wasn't until the police cars flew up behind Nathan that the car that had been following him veered into another lane. Nathan looked down at his speedometer, wondering what was happening. He wasn't speeding, he had stopped at every stop sign, he hadn't even run through any yellow lights. _

'_Maybe they aren't pulling me over.' Nathan tried to convince himself as he made his way to the shoulder of the road._

_As soon as he put his car into park two police officers ran up to his car. One reached out and swung open Nathan's door._

_Not knowing what else to do, Nathan reached down and unhooked his seatbelt. As he did this the police officer pulled him from his seat and threw him up against the side of the car._

_As the cop pulled Nathan's arms behind him, handcuffing him, he said, "Nathan Scott, we have a warrant for your arrest. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law. You have the right to an attorney, should you not be able to afford one, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand your rights as I have explained them to you?"_

"_Yes." It was all Nathan could mutter. He couldn't even ask questions._

_The cop guided Nathan back towards his police car. As Nathan sat down in the back he saw the other police officer get into Nathan's car and drive it away. _

_Nathan sat there, the whole way to the police station, wondering what this was about. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but deep down he knew, his past was finally catching up with him. _

_Arriving at the police station Nathan was led inside where he was fingerprinted and strip searched. The strip search was by far the most degrading moment of Nathan's life.. He had to take off all of his clothes and stand there as a police officer did a full body cavity search of Nathan. He knew that they were looking for drugs. He had head stories of people hiding them in the craziest places. All Nathan could do was let his mind go somewhere else._

_Of course his mind went to Haley. "My girlfriend, I have to call my girlfriend. She must be freaking out, I should have picked her up forever ago. Can I call my girlfriend?" Nathan pleaded with the officer._

"_You will get one phone call after you are booked. One, that's it, use it wisely."_

_Nathan stared at the floor, he knew that he had to call his dad but all he could think about was Haley and how she must feel. She had to be so worried. God, how did he screw up like this? Things were going so good for him, he was finally getting out of everything, he was changing his life for Haley. Now what would happen to them?_

_Finally Nathan was taken to a phone, picking it up he dialed the all too familiar number._

"_Scott Motors, how can I direct your call?" The cheeriness in the receptionist's voice made Nathan want to throw the phone against the wall._

"_Is Dan Scott available? This is his son, Nathan."_

"_No I'm sorry, he is in a meeting. Can I take a message?"_

"_This is an emergency, would you please get him?" Nathan heard her put the phone on hold. Minutes later his father answered._

"_Son, what's going on?" Dan sounded concerned, it wasn't like Nathan to pull him out of a meeting._

"_I'm in jail Dad. I need you to come and get me."_

Haley pulled away from Nathan and looked into his tear filled eyes, "This is going to be okay Nathan, we are going to be okay. Just tell me, how did this happen?"

_Nathan was sitting in the questioning room with two detectives, Nathan's father, and his father's lawyer, they all sat around a big table as one detective started to speak._

"_We have been following you for months Nathan, watching your every move. This is serious. We have solid evidence that proves you have been selling drugs over at least the past few months."_

"_What is this evidence?" Nathan's lawyer, Jim Shapiro, asked._

_As soon as he broached the question the door opened. Looking up Nathan's head began to spin._

"_Paul?" Nathan couldn't believe it. Paul, one of his clients, the freshman at the near by college, was standing in front of him in a police uniform._

"_We got a tip months ago as to who the players were in the drug ring circling Tree Hill High School. Since that time Paul here has been working undercover as a college student, a college student, and one of Nathan's clients."_

_Nathan's jaw nearly hit the floor. He couldn't believe it. He had started doing business with Paul through one of Nathan's friends, Terry. How could Terry have set him up like this? Why would Terry set him up like this? _

_All Nathan could do was put his head on the table. It took all he had to not cry, that was the last thing he wanted to do though. Cry in front of all of these detectives and his father, and his lawyer. _

_Nathan braced himself, knowing that nothing, not even his father's money, would make this go away._

"It's a long story Haley." Nathan looked at his watch, the watch that Haley had given him just weeks ago, just a few weeks ago when his life had been seemingly perfect. "There isn't time now Haley, we have to get to school."

"We can talk later Nathan, I have a quiz in first and second period, but what if we skip third and go talk somewhere?"

"Okay, I will meet you at your locker before third." Nathan started towards his car but then turned back to Haley. "It's okay Hales, if you want to break up with me. After all, I deserve it, I don't deserve you, not after all this."


	18. I'll Stand By You

**Author's note: **The lyrics used in this chapter are I'll Stand By You, by the Pretenders.

Chapter 18- I'll Stand By You

Nathan and Haley were sitting together in one of the practice rooms in the music wing of Tree Hill High. Haley knew it was one of the few places that no one would hear what they were talking about as the chorus was practicing right outside of the room. Everyone already knew enough of their business, she didn't want them to know anymore.

Nathan hadn't told Haley much about what had happened. Just the logistics, the court dates, and what the lawyer said might happen. The rest was too painful, he couldn't talk about it yet. It was still all too fresh.

Haley understood that, without Nathan saying it she understood that he wasn't ready to talk about it all. She just needed him to know that she was there when he was ready.

As Nathan and Haley sat there, just looking at one another, not knowing what to say, they could hear the first few notes of a familiar song begin.

Nathan reached out to Haley and pulled her into a hug. "I never want to let go Haley, never. Please don't make me let go."

_Oh, why you look so sad?_

_Tears are in your eyes_

_Come on and come to me now. _

_Don't be ashamed to cry, _

_Let me see you through_

_Cause I've seen the dark side too._

"Nathan, tell me this, why would you think that I'd want to break up with you? I wouldn't walk away from you now, not when you need me this much. I wouldn't turn my back on you in a time like this."

"But, how could you stay with me Haley? After all this? Look what I did!"

_When the night falls on you,_

_You don't know what to do,_

_Nothing you confess,_

_Could make me love you less_

_I'll stand by you,_

_I'll stand by you._

_Won't let nobody hurt you,_

_I'll stand by you._

"How could I stay with you? Because I love you. Because I knew about this. I knew that this could happen and I still stayed Nathan, I won't walk away now. We'll get through this Nathan, together, we'll get through it." Haley looked Nathan straight in the eyes as she spoke.

Nathan knew that she meant it, every word of it. "I just don't know what to do Haley, this all got so out of hand."

_So, if you're mad get mad, _

_Don't hold it all inside, _

_Come on talk to me now._

_And hey, what you got to hide?_

_I get angry too_

_But I'm a lot like you_

"Do whatever's in your heart Nathan. Cry if you need to, yell if you need to. Whatever you need Nathan, I'm here. Just don't shut down on me. Not now, you need to let me be there for you."

_When you're standing at the crossroads, _

_Don't know which path to choose,_

_Let me come along, _

_Cause even if your wrong _

_I'll stand by you_

_I'll stand by you_

_Take me into your darkest hour,_

_And I'll never desert you._

_I'll stand by you._

"Ho did I get so lucky Hales, how did I get so lucky as to have you in my life? I really don't deserve you."

"Don't keep saying that Nathan. You do deserve me. Sometimes it's me who thinks I don't deserve you." Haley felt a tear running down her cheek, Nathan reached out and brushed it away.

"You saved me Haley, you really did, this would be much worse if it wasn't for you.

_And when, when the night fall on you baby, _

_You're feeling all alone_

_You won't be on your own_

"What do you mean Nathan, how did I save you? I know that you were getting out, getting out for me, but a lot of good that did." Haley felt terrible about that, maybe if she had put up a fight months ago, Nathan might have gotten out sooner and they wouldn't be sitting here right now.

"This would have been a lot worst if it weren't for you Hales. I was selling to an undercover cop, that's how this all happened."

"Is he anyone I would know?"

"No, he was pretending to be a student, up at the college. They were planning to arrest me a few weeks ago Haley, the day you had the headache."

Haley clearly remembered it, Nathan was about to take her home because she had a terrible headache, she got them sometimes and they really hit her hard. Nathan could tell that she shouldn't be alone, she was so weak she could barely get herself into her bed, so Nathan stayed with her, sat next to her bed until her mother got home. Haley had known that he had something to do, but he cancelled it for her. He had cancelled it to sit there and watch her sleep, to make sure she was okay.

"You mean…?"

"Yeah, that day. He had asked for some serious stuff Hales, if I had made that sale not only would I have been arrested that day, but they would have had more on me. Much more, I'd be in jail right now. But I'm not, because of you." From the moment Nathan put all the pieces together he knew that it was Haley who had saved him, Haley who had kept him from rotting in jail. His love for Haley had pulled him out of what could have been a really dark place. "Haley, you really are my guardian angel."

_I'll stand by you, _

_I'll stand by you,_

_Won't let nobody hurt you._

_I'll stand by you_

_Take me to your darkest hour _

_And I'll never desert you_

_I'll stand by you._


	19. Apologies

Chapter 19- Apologies

Haley leaned in to kiss Nathan one last time before they confronted her parents. Haley had known that Nathan would need to talk to them at some point, apologize and all that, but she thought it was too soon. They only found out about everything earlier today, but Nathan felt that the sooner the better. He didn't want them sitting around thinking terrible things about him any longer than necessary.

Haley was absolutely terrified. Her parents weren't always understanding, and this was huger than anything Haley had ever had to deal with her parents with before. Nathan said he could handle it, but part of her was scared that he couldn't. That he wouldn't say the right things and upset them more, and then they wouldn't ever let Haley see him again. Haley knew though, if this was what Nathan wanted to do, she had to step back and let him.

"Are you sure you want to do this? It's not a big deal if you wait a little while." Haley looked towards Nathan hopefully.

"No Hales, I told you, I'm going to do this now. It'll be okay, I promise. This is my mess, I should explain it to your parents not you."

Haley inhaled a deep breath and held out her hand for Nathan, "Okay, let's go." Nathan took her hand and Haley reached out and opened the door.

She and Nathan stepped inside and saw her parents sitting in the family room with grave expressions on their face. Nathan walked in ahead of Haley, "Mr. James, Mrs. James, if you wouldn't mind I would like to talk to you."

Haley's parents looked to one another and her mother nodded, "Okay Nathan." Haley's father Jimmy nodded to Nathan and then turned to Haley, "Haley, will you excuse us?"

Haley nodded and stepped into the kitchen. Nathan was standing right around the corner so Haley reached out and held his hand. She squeezed it to let him know that she was there for him.

"I know that you have heard about all of this, on the radio and in the news and stuff. I know that I owe you an explanation, and I know that it had better be a good one if I even think I'll have a prayer of ever seeing Haley again. All I can do is be honest, and hope that that is good enough for you."

Nathan looked towards Haley's parents, her mother nodded to let Nathan know it was okay to continue.

"I started drug dealing about 3 years ago. To be honest, I'm not really sure why. It wasn't for the money, I do know that. Maybe it was for the notoriety I knew it would earn me, and it did, but I really don't know. I started into it pretty slow, but over the last couple of years things started to pick up. I was always really careful, now I know that doesn't make it any better, but I think that that was why it went on so long. It was all going fine, and then I met Haley. Haley made me want to be better. When she finally confronted me about all of this, finally asked me if the rumors were true, I owned up to it. I didn't tell her this, but when I owned up to it I swore to myself that I would try and start getting out. Then, on New Year's, I told Haley that that was my resolution, that I was done drug dealing. That was the complete truth. I have not sold anything to anyone since that day. That doesn't matter though, and I realize that, this is me owning up to my past. It doesn't matter if I am doing it now or not, I know that, I know I need to take responsibility for what I did in the past."

Nathan paused for a minute, he had to gather up all his nerves. It had been hard enough for him to learn to let Haley know how he really felt, but to say it to her parents, well that seemed near impossible. But he knew that it was his only chance. So, he took a deep breath, squeezed Haley's hand a little and just let it go.

"The most important part of this isn't about how long I dealt drugs, or that it's done now. The most important part is how much I love your daughter. She is such an amazing person. She has a bigger heart than anyone I have ever met. I never realized that me doing something stupid like drug dealing could affect her so much, and I certainly never thought that that could roll over and affect your family. But it has, and I'm so sorry. There aren't even words for me to express how sorry I am, for putting all of you through this. I know that I shouldn't ask you for anything, because you don't owe me anything, but please, let me keep seeing Haley. I don't know if I can get through this without Haley." Nathan let out a big breath. "And, well, I guess that's all I really can say."

Haley's parents looked at each other for a few minutes, it was as though they were having a conversation with each other through their eyes. After what seemed like forever Jimmy finally started in.

"Haley, you can come out from around the corner now." Jimmy waited a minute until Haley entered the room, and she and Nathan took a seat on the other couch, facing her parents. "I can only imagine how difficult that was Nathan, but I'm glad you did it. Hearing all this come from you was more valuable than anything. Your love for our Haley is very apparent, and that's important to us, but so is protecting her. You need to understand that, protecting Haley and this family has to be our top priority. That being said, we will allow her to continue dating you, but the rules will be strict . Haley can continue riding to and from school with you, but she will always come straight home. Nathan, you are allowed to come over here one night a week, when Lydia and I are home. For the time being that's all we can offer."

"Daddy, that is fine. Isn't it Nathan?"

Haley looked towards Nathan and could see a tear falling down his cheek, "Thank you sir, thank you so much."

"You're welcome. Thank you for being so honest with us. That has earned you a lot of respect. It will take a long time for us to trust you again, but if you work hard at it, it will happen. Understood?" Jimmy rose to his feet and extended his hand out to Nathan.

Nathan rose and shook it, "Understood."

"Now, Nathan, if you will excuse us, we'd like to talk to Haley."

"Okay." Nathan turned and bent down, kissing Haley on the forehead. "Call me later." Then he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "And good luck."

Haley nodded and Nathan turned around and left. Haley couldn't hold back her tears any longer, "I'm so sorry Mom, Dad, really. I should have told you about this. Especially this. I just didn't want you to not let me see him anymore."

"Just be honest with us from now on Haley. Please." Haley's mom spoke for the first time since her and Nathan had arrived at the house. "We want to be there for you, help you make good decisions. We knew from the first time we met Nathan how much you cared for him, we would have seen that and been sensitive to that."

"Realize young lady, you tell us everything from now on, everything. Anything else comes out and we may not let you continue seeing him." Jimmy said to Haley sternly, she knew he wasn't kidding.

"I understand Daddy, no more secrets."

"Okay. Well, I have to head back to work for a little while longer." Jimmy turned towards his wife, "I will be home by 7, if you don't mind holding dinner."

"Of course."

Once Haley's dad left Haley stood to go to her room. "I just have one question mom."

"Sure, what?"

"How come you didn't say anything when Nathan was here? I really thought that you would have something to say to him about all this."

"Because I couldn't talk through my tears Haley-bub. That boy loves you in a serious way, and seeing him so scared that he would lose you, well it brought tears to my eyes and nearly broke my heart."


	20. Just When You Think It Couldn't Get Any

Chapter 20- Just When You Think it Couldn't Get Any Worse

"I will say this, I really do miss our alone time." Nathan said as he pulled back from Haley for a second. He had to take a minute to regain his composure. Making out with Haley drove him nuts, and knowing that it would be short lived for some reason only turned Nathan on more.

Nathan and Haley had gotten used to furiously making out in Nathan's car every afternoon in Haley's driveway. They didn't have long, Haley had to be in the house and Nathan had to be long gone by the time Haley's parents came home from work.

It had been a couple of weeks since Nathan had been arrested, and it didn't seem that Haley's parents were going to bend on the rules anytime soon. One night a week, that was all they got. They made the best of it though. Nathan usually came over on either Friday or Saturday night, as early as he possibly could. The two would watch movies and cuddle on the couch. Their favorite nights were when Haley's parents were watching a movie or something upstairs. Then, they could make out until they heard Haley's dad's footsteps on the stairs heading down to check on them.

"I miss it too. But hopefully they will ease up sometime in the near future." Haley tried to convince not only Nathan, but herself. "So are you coming over tomorrow night?"

"Yeah, I am. I work until 4:30, so I'll come over right after. Does that sound okay?"

"Sounds perfect. That will give us plenty of time together. I'll let my parents know." Haley leaned over and kissed Nathan quickly on the lips.

Haley started to climb out of the car when she turned around, "Kiss you later!"

ooooOoooo

As soon as Haley heard the knock on the front door she ran towards it and swung it open. "Hey there mister, how was work?"

"Would have been better if you were there, but oh well." Nathan stepped inside and pulled Haley in for a kiss.

"Nathan, hi, will you be joining us for dinner?" Lydia James quickly interrupted the young lovers.

"Sure, sounds good. Just let me go and wash up."

Nathan headed towards the stairs and Haley headed into the dining room to help set the table.

After dinner and dessert Haley and Nathan settled in on the couch to watch some movies. An hour into the first movie Haley and Nathan heard Haley's parents head upstairs to watch a movie.

The two instantly started making out, knowing that they would have at least an hour until Haley's dad would come to check on them.

Things started to get heated between the two and Nathan guided Haley down so that she was lying underneath him. They two hadn't had sex in over a month and were going crazy with anticipation.

"I want you Nathan. So bad, I don't think I can wait any longer." Haley softly whispered into Nathan's ear. "Pull the blanket on over us."

Nathan reached behind him and pulled the blanket over them. "Haley, I don't think we have very long."

"Then hurry up and make love to me."

Nathan didn't need to hear another word. He loosened the waistband on Haley's sweatpants and lowered them. He could feel her wetness through her thong and pushed that down as well.

Haley reached up and unbuttoned Nathan's pants. He eased himself off of her and lowered his pants and his boxers, but not before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a condom. He slid it on and lowered himself on top of Haley again.

Nathan looked into her eyes and slowly entered her. She raised her hips towards him allowing him to go into her deeply.

Haley didn't know if it was the fact that they hadn't made love in so long, or the fact that her parents could come in at any second, but she felt more turned on than she could ever remember being. She grinded her hips against Nathan and could tell that he wouldn't be able to hold out long.

Haley pulled in a sharp breath and bit into Nathan's shoulder, trying to do anything besides scream as she felt her release. Nathan threw his head back as he found his.

They laid there together for a minute, just holding each other close. Nathan raised himself off of her and headed quickly towards the bathroom.

Just as Nathan walked out of the bathroom Haley heard her father heading down the stairs. She breathed a sigh of relief, they had finished just in the nick of time.

Nathan walked back into the living room and sat down next to Haley. "Close one wasn't it?"

"Yeah, definitely was. Close, but so good." Haley leaned over and kissed Nathan lightly on the lips. "We are starting to get good at this whole 'supervised visit' thing."

ooooOoooo

Haley glanced down towards her watch as she rushed towards the back entrance of the school. She had had to stay late for a meeting with a teacher and her mom was picking her up. Haley didn't want to make her mom wait, she knew that she would think she was sneaking around with Nathan or something instead of actually meeting with a teacher.

Haley couldn't wait for her parents to ease up. She hadn't complained once, knowing that complaining would do nothing besides make the one visit a week thing stick longer. Nathan had been spending a lot of time talking to Haley's parents, he usually ate dinner with them when he come over. Haley was pretty sure that this was helping them to start to trust him. She really thought that things would get better soon.

Haley pushed open the door and saw her mom pulling up to the curb, right on time as always.

As she started to get into the car Haley noticed that her mother had an unhappy look on her face. "What's up Mom?"

"I thought we agreed no secrets Haley." Lydia raised an eyebrow at her daughter.

"We did." Haley swallowed nervously, "What's this about mom?"

"I found this in between the couch cushions when I was cleaning this afternoon." Lydia held up a condom wrapper.

Haley opened her mouth to say something but couldn't quite find the right words.

"Save the explanations for your father Haley, he is going to love this one."


	21. Last Chance

**Author's note:** I realized that I haven't been paying much attention to Haley's relationship with Brooke and Peyton. I kind of let all that take a back burner and that was never my intention, they, along with Lucas, will begin to have a stronger presence in the story. I just wanted to say thanks for everyone that reads this. It truly is a labor of love. I do still wish for more reviews, but I don't really know what to do to entice you guys to review?

Chapter 21- Last Chance

Haley sat on the couch anxiously staring between her mother and the clock. With each passing minute, the tension in the room increased. Haley knew that her father would be home any minute and that it wasn't going to be pretty. Haley knew that every father's nightmare was discovering that his daughter was having sex.

Haley had always been a daddy's little girl, being that she was the youngest of 6 kids. She and her father fought to no end, but it was only because they were so much alike. They were both stubborn and that made arguments between them sometimes continue much longer than necessary. No matter how much they fought, it was obvious to everyone that Haley's father loved his little girl to no end. It was only because of this love that he tended to be more than a little overprotective.

Haley didn't know it, but it had been hard for her father to accept her relationship with Nathan. Jimmy knew from the minute he saw the way Haley looked at Nathan that it wasn't just a school girl crush. He knew that his daughter was falling in love with Nathan, and fast. Jimmy knew that that would require him to begin to let Haley go. After all, he couldn't be the main man in her life forever.

"Honey, I'm home." Jimmy proclaimed as he walked in the door. His happy demeanor quickly went away the second he saw the look on his wife's face. It was at telling look, and he knew that all wasn't well in the James' house. "What's going on?"

"Well, I was cleaning this afternoon and I found this stuck in between the couch cushions in the living room." Lydia held up the condom wrapper as she spoke.

Jimmy's eyes widened with shock. In his wildest dreams he never thought that he would be having this conversation to soon, especially with Haley. "Haley, what part of no more secrets were you confused on?"

"No part of it Daddy. It just never seemed like the right time to tell you. I thought that the whole drug dealing was enough to deal with, I didn't want to make things worse." Haley looked anywhere besides in her father's eyes as she spoke. She was ashamed, not only because of the sex part, but mostly because she knew she had disappointed her father.

"It may have added another layer to the situation, but it would've been better than lying." Jimmy looked to his wife to take over, he needed a minute to process all of this.

"It isn't only the lying that we are upset with Haley, it is the fact that you disrespected us by having sex in our house." Lydia paused for a minute, "What I want to know is how you managed to get Nathan in here when your father and I weren't home? Do we have to do away with him driving you to and from school? That seems like it may be the only solution if he is sneaking in here when he is supposed to just be dropping you off."

"No Mom, please don't do that. He doesn't sneak in here." Haley's cheeks reddened with embarrassment, she tried to look into her parents' eyes as she spoke with them, but was unable to. "It happened when Nathan was here Saturday night."

"Oh and that makes it better?" Jimmy prodded as his voice rose with anger. "Now this really is a toss up; which is more disrespectful, you sneaking Nathan into the house or you having sex with him while your mother and I are in the other room?" Jimmy scratched his chin for emphasis, "Neither option really appeals to me Haley."

"I understand. I'm sorry. It was wrong, I knew it. I just don't know, I lost my head I guess. Things have been so hard with Nathan dealing with all of this and with us not getting to see each other a lot. I didn't use my better judgment." Haley held her breath, hoping that the punishment wouldn't be too terrible.

"I'm inclined to tell you that you can't see Nathan anymore…"

Haley jumped to her feet and interrupted, "Whatever you do, don't do that. Please Daddy. That would be the worst thing ever. I love him, so much, I really do. I never expected to feel like this at my age but I do and I can't stop it. I can't not be with him, I don't know what I would do. I would be miserable. He means so much to me, I really don't want to even think about what my life would be like without him."

"Haley, I think that you're being a little over dramatic." Lydia crossed her arms and looked her daughter in the eye, "He's just a boy, it wouldn't be the end of the world."

"No, he isn't just a boy, not to me. He has changed my life. Before I met him I just went along with my life, I wasn't happy really but I wasn't unhappy, I was just content. But then I met Nathan, and it all changed. I learned what true happiness was. I really started living. Everyday with him is better than the one before it. And after having that, well, I don't know if I can go back."

"We could sit here and argue about whether you're exaggerating or not, but that will get us nowhere. I don't think that making you guys break up is the solution. I think that that will just cause you to sneak around and lie to us even more. That's the last thing that your mother and I want to see happen. With that being said, you're grounded for two weeks. I mean grounded, no phone, no tv, no going out, nothing. You will not see Nathan at all for those two weeks. Your mother and I will drive you to and from school during those two weeks. After the two weeks are up you can continue riding with Nathan to and from school and he can come over one night a week as we previously agreed on. But this is it Haley, this is the last chance, and I mean that. I'm already being more lenient than I'm inclined to be. Anything else happens and I don't think we'll be able to allow you to see Nathan anymore." Jimmy looked to his wife, who nodded in agreement.

"Okay." Haley knew that arguing would do nothing but would do nothing but prolong the grounding.

Jimmy stood up and walked to the phone, picked it up and then walked over to Haley. "You can quickly call Nathan and tell him that you're grounded and that we will be driving you to and from school. That's it, five minutes tops. The clock starts now."

Haley hopped off the couch and walked out of the room as she dialed Nathan's house.

"Hello?"

"Hey Nathan, it's me. I'm just calling to tell you that I'm grounded. For two weeks, I can't really talk about it now, but while I'm grounded my mom and dad will be taking me to school."

"Haley what happened?"

"I can't really talk now Nathan." Haley said as she looked over her shoulder, she saw that her mom was standing there listening to every word.

"Okay, I'll meet you at your locker tomorrow morning and we can talk about what happened."

"Sounds good Nathan. Bye." With that Haley hung up the phone. Her mother held out her hand and Haley handed her the phone, knowing she wouldn't be touching it again for two whole weeks.

ooooOoooo

As Haley walked towards her locker the next morning she saw Nathan leaning up against it. Haley was surprised that he was already there, he didn't usually get to school this early without Haley threatening him.

Nathan had worried all night. This grounding seemed to come out of nowhere. He and Haley had already gone through so much to be together, he wondered what it was that was standing in they way now.

"Hey Nathan." Haley leaned forward to quickly kiss Nathan.

"What happened Hales?" Nathan looked concerned.

"My parents found a condom wrapper in between the couch cushions. So, I'm grounded for two weeks."

Nathan's face turned from concern into embarrassment. "That's all my fault Haley. I honestly forgot all about the wrapper." Nathan felt terrible. He had been so worried about rushing to the bathroom to get rid of the condom, he had forgotten all about the wrapper.

"It's okay Nathan. It isn't your fault, I could have taken care of it myself. There isn't any point in blaming each other, it is what it is. In two weeks it can go back to normal, even though normal kind of sucks." Haley had to admit it, seeing each other one day a week really wasn't all that incredible, but it was definitely better than nothing.

"They won't even let you ride with me to school?"

"Nope, when they say grounded, they mean grounded. I know this sucks. I mean, who wants a girlfriend that they can never even spend time with?" Haley asked nervously, she worried that Nathan wouldn't want to put up with all the obstacles her parents placed between them.

"You're asking the wrong question Haley. To me the question is who wants a girlfriend who is there for them when they need them the most?" Nathan reached out and took Haley's hands and held them tight as he looked into her eyes, "You were there for me when I needed it so now it's my turn. It won't be like this forever. We just have to be patient with each other and wait for the day when things get better."

"That day seems awfully far off Nathan. I feel like my parents will never let up."

"They will Haley, they will. All we can do is follow their rules and hope it is sooner rather than later."

"And if it's later?" Haley asked, hoping she wouldn't come to regret it.

"Then we'll wait for later together."

ooooOoooo

"Are we going to talk about why everything is so tense in your house?" Peyton asked curiously.

Haley had had to beg, but her parents had finally agreed to let Peyton come over to "study." Haley hadn't seen either her or Brooke in quite a while and she was in serious need of some girl time.

"It's that noticeable huh?" Haley looked towards Peyton who nodded. "Well, my parents were already having a hard time adjusting to the fact that Nathan got arrested and then, to make it worse, they found a condom wrapper in between the couch cushions." Haley sighed deeply at the memory of that conversation with her parents.

"Whew, that really sucks Haley. How long are you grounded for?" Peyton knew that Haley's parents were quick to hand out groundings, and after having gone through 5 older brothers and sisters before Haley, they didn't mess around. When they said grounded they meant it.

"Two weeks. Nathan can't even drive me to and from school. I have to ride with my parents." Haley wrinkled her nose for emphasis.

"Are we ever going to talk about how you and Nathan like never even get to see each other anymore? Is it all really worth all of this? The groundings, your parents not trusting you, is all of it worth it?"

Haley thought to herself for a minute, and instead of all of those bad things that Peyton had mentioned, she remembered the good stuff. The late night phone conversations, the dinner dates, making out at Haley's locker, goofing around at work. It was weird, but whenever Haley thought about her and Nathan, those were the things she thought of, not the groundings and the sneaking around.

"It's all worth it, every minute of it. I don't know how to describe it Pey, but when I'm with him, I don't know, I just feel so alive. If I have to put up with being grounded for a couple of weeks, and put up with my parents watching our every move, well it's still worth it. Really, it is. I'm in love and I realize that there are sacrifices that come with that."

Peyton looked thoughtful for a moment. She had never experienced anything like what Haley was describing. Feeling alive? Peyton rarely felt that. Her life had been upside down lately. Her father was always away, she saw Haley less and less, and Brooke, well she was Brooke. Peyton loved Brooke to death, but Peyton just didn't think Brooke would understand how Peyton sometimes felt.

"It just seems crazy, we dreamed about this for years, finding amazing boys and falling in love. And here you are, you have it Haley, you have all of it. And the fact that you're willing to make sacrifices to have that love, well that just shows how real it is. I just never thought that any of us would find love this soon. I really didn't."

"I didn't either Peyton. But Nathan just swooped in and swept me off my feet and since then everything has been different."

"I'm happy for you Haley, I really am. I just miss my best friend. I feel like we never get to hang out anymore." Peyton hated to admit it, but she really did miss Haley. "I need you Haley, even though it's hard for me to admit, I really do need you."

"I need you too, I guess I just kind of let everything besides Nathan take a back burner." Haley looked towards Peyton, who was close to tears. She realized just how much time the two hadn't spent together. It was the same with Brooke, outside of school, the girls rarely saw each other. And then even when they were in school, well, Haley tried to see Nathan as much as possible. "That won't happen anymore Peyton, I promise. As soon as this grounding is over you, me, and Brooke are going to have an old fashioned girls' night. I'll try harder Peyton, I promise."


	22. All For Love

**Author's note: **Sorry guys, if you received to alerts that didn't work for this chapter. I was doing a little bit of switching stuff around because of some problems with the chapters. But…I hope you found this chapter anyways. Sometimes a little fluff is needed. Enjoy!

Chapter 22- All For Love

Nathan paced up and down Haley's driveway trying to calm his nerves. He knew that what he was about to do was probably not going to turn out the way he wanted, but that wasn't going to discourage him from trying. He and Haley had come so far since they began dating, and Nathan wanted to plan her a night that she would never forget. But, in order to have that unforgettable night, Nathan had to convince Haley's parents to lift her grounding for one night.

After finally gathering up the courage to ring the door bell, Nathan waited anxiously as he heard footsteps approach the door. Haley's father pulled it open.

"I'm sorry Nathan, but Haley's at work right now."

"I know, I, um, actually came to talk to you. If you have a minute that is." Nathan hoped his request wouldn't fall on deft ears.

Jimmy checked his watch, "I do have a little bit of time right now. Come on in." Jimmy stepped back allowing Nathan to enter.

Jimmy walked into the living room and Nathan followed. Nathan took a seat on the couch and Jimmy sat down in a chair opposite him. Jimmy sat back and crossed his arms wondering what this was about.

"I need to ask you a favor Mr. James. It has to do with Valentine's Day. Now, I know that Haley will still be grounded on that day, but I was hoping I could convince you to let her do something with me that night." Nathan rubbed his hands together, his palms were sweating he was so nervous.

"You're right Nathan, Haley is still grounded on Valentine's Day, it actually happens to the last day of her punishment. Before I will even consider lifting the grounding a day early, I need to know what these plans are. Because, grounded or not, you're only allowed to see Haley at our house under our supervision, so you are asking for an exception on that rule too."

"I know that, and I understand that completely. I was just hoping that you would make an exception for one day. I wanted to bring Haley over to my mother's house and make her dinner."

Jimmy rubbed his chin as he thought about this for a minute, "Will your mother be there?"

"Yes she will, her husband works that night so she won't be going out at all. I could always make Haley dinner here, but I don't know, I just want it to be special. My mom has this really nice glassed in patio, it overlooks the water. It is just so nice, I thought it would be a great setting for a romantic dinner." Nathan looked expectantly towards Haley's father.

"I will have to talk to your mother Nathan, to make sure she will be there the whole time. But, as long as she is okay with it, so am I. I'll lift Haley's grounding one night early."

A huge smile broke out across Nathan's face, he hadn't anticipated this to be so easy. "Thank you Mr. Scott, this really means a lot. I just want to do something nice for Haley, she has been so great during this whole mess. So supportive and everything. I really want to show her how much it all means to me."

"I know that Nathan, that's why I'm allowing this." Jimmy couldn't help but smile himself, young love was such a wonder sometimes.

"Well, I have to go and start planning all of this." Nathan rose to his feet and extended his hand to Jimmy, "Thank you sir."

Jimmy shook it willingly and nodded. Nathan turned and headed out the door, he couldn't wait to tell Haley the good news.

ooooOoooo

"You don't think this dress is a little slutty?" Haley raised an eyebrow and looked towards Brooke.

"Come on TutorGirl, it's hot. I think it's perfect. Ditch the turtlenecks and wool sweaters for one night grandma." Brooke teased.

Haley was usually really conservative in what she wore, but she had wanted something perfect for tonight. She knew that when there was a clothing crisis, there was no one better to handle it than Brooke.

"Haley come sit down, let me do your make up."

Haley headed over and sat down across from Brooke.

"Don't put on too much."

"Calm down I won't." Brooke started to work her magic. "So what does TutorBoy have planned for you guys tonight?"

"Dinner at his mother's house. He somehow convinced my parents to not only lift my grounding, but to let me go over there. I haven't seen Nathan outside of school or my parent's house in like over a month. I can't wait." Haley felt giddy just talking about it. She had been looking forward to tonight ever since Nathan told her about it. It was her first Valentine's Day with a boyfriend she really liked.

Haley heard the doorbell ring as Brooke was putting the finishing touches on her make up. She started to squirm a little so Brooke leaned back and took a look at her work.

"Perfect. Guaranteed to turn Nathan on." Brooke winked at Haley.

"Mom, can you tell Nathan I will be down in a minute?" Haley yelled down to her mother.

After a few seconds she could hear the front door open. Haley stood up and walked over to her mirror. Nathan had told Haley he was cooking her a special dinner and that he wanted to pretend they were at a nice restaurant, instead of at his mother's house. Haley took that as a hint to pull out all the stops when it came to her outfit for the night.

Brooke had come over armed with loads of dresses and shoes from her own closet. Haley had decided on a strapless red dress that fell into ruffles just above her knees. She had also chosen some black spike heeled strappy sandals. Giggling she thought that they would make up for at least half of the height difference between her and Nathan. With the help of Brooke, Haley had curled her hair, as she knew Nathan liked it, and it fell softly over her shoulders.

Touching up her lip gloss one last time Haley was pretty proud of herself, she didn't usually get all dressed up like this, but she had to admit, she looked pretty good.

"I seriously owe you Brooke, thanks for the help."

"It was my pleasure. Now go, make tonight Nathan's pleasure." Brooke started to clean up her beauty arsenal. "You don't have to wait for me, go, have fun. Call me tomorrow with all the dirty details."

Haley jokingly winked at Brooke. Grabbing her purse off of her bed Haley headed down the stairs. There was a strange man standing in the front hallway who gestured towards the door. "Ms. James, your limo awaits."

Haley walked towards the door and as soon as she saw it her jaw dropped. Nathan had rented a black stretch limo. Haley had told him before how she had never ridden in one, and Nathan had teased her saying that his father had his own driver. Haley knew that Nathan needed to enlist his father's help on this one.

Haley walked down the driveway as the driver rushed in front of her to open the door. Haley climbed in and was amazed at the sheer size of it.

As the car pulled away from the curb, Haley could feel the anticipation bubbling inside of her. It was clear that Nathan was going to pull out all of the stops on this night.

Haley had been shocked that her father had agreed to lifting her grounding a night early, that was very unlike him. Haley knew that whatever Nathan said to convince him, it must have been good.

The driver came around and opened the door for Haley, after having pulled up to Nathan's mother's house. Haley stepped out and headed for the front door. She rang the doorbell and tapped her sandal clad foot as she waited.

Nathan answered the door and looked so adorable in black dress pants, a black dress shirt, and a red tie. His blue eyes sparkled as he took in the sight of Haley.

"Wow, you look amazing Hales." Nathan reached out for her hand, leading her into the house.

"So do you." Haley couldn't take her eyes off of Nathan, he looked so nice. He had excitement radiating from him.

After the two shared a few kisses Haley took her first look around the house. There was a trail of candles leading towards the back door.

Haley became mesmerized and followed the candles and stepped out onto the back patio. There were candles lining the perimeter and rose petals scattered over the floor. Haley couldn't believe Nathan had gone to all this trouble for her.

"Take a seat Hales, I'll go and get dinner." Nathan said as he pulled out a chair for Haley.

Nathan disappeared into the kitchen and arrived back in a few minutes. "I made your favorite."

Haley giggled as Nathan set down a plate heaped with macaroni and cheese in front of her, "Mmmm, food of the gods."

Nathan laughed under his breath, "I know."

Nathan had considered making something fancier for Haley, but knew that when it was all said and done, making her favorite dish would mean far more than making something that looked nicer.

Nathan sat down across from Haley and the two began to eat. They were silent, merely enjoying each other's company and the beautiful view that the patio afforded.

When they were finished eating Nathan cleared the plates and brought them into the kitchen. When he returned he carried a couple of blankets.

"Let's go outside and sit down by the water. We can start a little fire in the fire pit and roast marshmallows."

"That sounds perfect Nathan."

Haley followed Nathan outside and sat down on the blanket once Nathan laid it out. Nathan then wrapped one of the blankets around Haley, knowing that the cold night air would be too much for her.

After roasting some marshmallows the two cuddled underneath the blankets and stared up at the starry night sky. They sat there just enjoying each other in silence for a while until Nathan began to speak.

"I have something for you Hales." Nathan reached into his pocket.

"Oh Nathan, I don't have anything for you, I'm sorry. I haven't been able to go to the mall." Haley looked towards the ground, feeling a little embarrassed. Of course they would exchange gifts, she couldn't believe she hadn't thought of it.

"Haley, you've given me so much already, really you have. You've made my life so much better. I've never been as happy as I've been since I met you. It's like my life had no purpose before. I never had a reason to be better or to do better. And then I met you and it gave everything new meaning. I mean everything Hales, I want to do better at everything for you. The happiness that you have given me is gift enough. That's why I did all this tonight Hales, to show you how much you mean to me."

"That's so sweet Nathan. You've done so much for me too, you really have. I feel the same way, like I was just going through the motions before I met you. But now, well, everything is just so much different. Everything feels new to me." Tears formed in Haley's eyes.

Nathan reached out to wipe away a single tear that had fallen down Haley's cheeks. He didn't need to ask her what was wrong because he knew the answer, nothing. Nothing was wrong, that tear was from happiness.

Nathan handed Haley a small black box with a pink bow tied around it. Haley untied the bow and opened the box, as she did a smile broke out across her face.

"It's beautiful Nathan." It was all Haley could say as she gazed at the heart shaped ruby ring sitting beautifully amidst the black velvet of the box.

"I hope it fits." Nathan reached into the box and lifted the ring out, placing it on Haley's finger.

"It's perfect Nathan, all of it. The dinner, the fire, the ring, jeez, even the stars are perfect tonight."

"I had to call in some major favors to get those stars Hales." Nathan teased lovingly.

Haley looked down at her hand and the ring that sparkled in the light of the fire. "I love you Nathan, thank you for all of this."

"I love you too Hales."

With that Nathan laid back down to stare up at the sky, Haley followed his lead and nestled her head into his chest. She inhaled deeply, wanting to remember absolutely every detail about this perfect night, this perfect Valentine's Day.


	23. Black and White?

**Author's note: **Just wanted to thank all the readers and those few of you who review. I especially want to thank **thetroublew/loveisi'm2lostinU **for reading the whole story and bringing to my attention a small mistake, and reviewing twice. I also want to thank **ggfan01, 1ThNalEy23, NaLeYBaBiixo, **and **cherrymfzb** who have all taken the time to review recently. I really do appreciate the reviews. Let me know what you guys think, any questions you have, things you might like to see, especially with the other characters. A lot of the Naley stuff is already written, but I still don't really know where I want to take the lives of Brooke, Peyton, Lucas and Jake.

Chapter 23- Black and White?

Brooke walked towards the tutoring center hoping that Haley would be there. It was only lunchtime and Brooke was already having what seemed to be the worst day ever. Not only had the heel broken off of one of her favorite shoes, but she had gotten assigned Saturday detention because she forgot to turn in a paper in English.

There was nothing that Brooke Davis hated more than Saturday detention. There were so many better things she could do with her time on a Saturday morning, like sleeping.

Brooke had tried to talk to Peyton, but Peyton hadn't been willing to dish out the sympathy that Brooke was desperately in need of. Instead, Peyton told Brooke that her teacher was right in giving her detention. After all, the paper in question was weeks late, not just a day or two. Peyton reminded Brooke that it should have been turned in forever ago, and that her teacher had already been nice enough to grant some leniency.

That was certainly not the response Brooke wanted, and it caused her to get even more upset. She wanted someone to tell her it was okay, that she would find a new pair of shoes to be her favorite, and that her teacher was way out of line. Brooke knew that when she wanted sympathy, Haley was the one to talk to.

Haley wasn't as judgmental as Peyton. Everything wasn't black and white. Haley would consider people's feelings rather than just assigning right or wrong to something.

Brooke walked into the tutoring center and gazed around. She filled with disappointment as she realized that Haley wasn't there.

Brooke turned on her heel and began to head out of the tutoring center when she ran right into someone, a pretty muscular someone. It almost knocked Brooke off of her feet.

Starting to let the anger that had been boiling inside of her all morning take over Brooke looked up to see who her assailant was and let them have a piece of her mind. She was thrown off guard when she recognized them.

"Lucas?"

Brooke knew very little about Lucas, besides the fact that he was pretty close friends with Haley. Lucas played basketball, and because of that was more friends with all the jocks. It was a totally different crowd than Brooke's.

"Brooke. Hey." Lucas eyed the tiny brunette. He had seen her around before, even with Haley a few times, but he had never realized just how pretty she really was. "I was looking for Haley, have you seen her?"

"No, she is totally MIA. I was looking for her too." Brooke sighed loudly, hoping that it would entice Lucas to ask her what was wrong.

"Is everything okay Brooke?"

'Success,' Brooke thought to herself. Lucas had taken her bait.

"It's just that I'm having the absolute worst day of my life, and I really wanted to talk to Haley about it, and she isn't here." Brooke crossed her arms over her chest and shot Lucas a look of frustration.

"Worst day ever huh?" Lucas chuckled to himself. It was obvious that Brooke was over exaggerating, and not just a little. But she looked to cute standing before him all frustrated, so he was more than willing to listen to her problems. "What's going on?"

"Well, first off, I broke the heel on my shoe while I was running up the stairs this morning." Brooke threw up her hands in exasperation.

"And why were you running on the stairs in the first place?" Lucas teased.

"Because I was running late for first period, obviously."

"Of course." Lucas looked thoughtful for a moment, "Can you get another pair?"

"Yeah but no other pair will compare to this pair. They are like seriously my favorite. I mean, look how well they go with this outfit."

Lucas laughed out loud as Brooke struck a pose to show off her outfit. Even though he knew absolutely nothing about whether or not her shoes matched her outfit perfectly, he did know that her little plaid skirt was just short enough to show off her nicely tanned, shapely legs.

'That is a problem. Anything else bothering you?" Lucas knew he was in for it.

"Want to know? Good, cuz I'll tell you. I have stupid Saturday detention." Brooke threw her arms in the air again, "My stupid teacher is so unfair."

"Well, I think I know that you need."

"And what's that?" Brooke crossed her arms over her chest once again and looked expectantly towards Lucas.

"Lunch, with me, at my mom's café. She makes a killer grilled ham and swiss." Lucas hoped that his invitation wouldn't be laughed off.

"With french fries?"

"With french fries." Lucas confirmed.

"Sounds perfect." Brooke squealed. "Let's go."

Brooke started to walk off towards the exit to the parking lot. Lucas just stood there for a minute, watching her walk. He was amazed that he had never realized just how hot Haley's friend was until now.

Brooke turned around, realizing that Lucas was not with her.

"Coming?"

"Yeah, I'm right behind you."

ooooOoooo

As Haley and Nathan walked towards his car to head out to lunch, Haley thought she saw Brooke and Lucas walking through the other side of the parking lot. Figuring she must be seeing things she shrugged it off, the two barely knew each other after all.

Haley flipped through the radio as Nathan drove towards McDonalds. When he pulled into the drive thru he ordered himself his usual double cheeseburger and french fries and Haley her usual chicken salad.

"It's so nice out Nathan, why don't we go and eat at the park? It's right on the way back to school."

"Sounds good to me Hales."

Minutes later they pulled up to the park and walked towards a park bench. Haley sat down and took in a deep breath of fresh air. It was finally spring time and Haley couldn't be happier about it.

"Let's do something fun this weekend Nathan, something outside enjoying this gorgeous weather."

Haley's parents had finally lightened up on her and Nathan seeing each other. It had been a little over two months since the whole arrest ordeal and Haley's parents, only a few weeks ago, finally told Haley that she was free to see Nathan as she pleased.

Haley knew that the only condition of that was that she kept being up front with her parents. It had been rough couple of months, but Haley had started being more open with her parents and she was rewarded for it accordingly.

"That sounds perfect, what did you have in mind?"

"I don't know. Maybe we could drive up to the beach and have a cook out or something. That would be nice."

"That would be nice. We can cook out at my father's beach house. He has this awesome grill." Nathan paused for a minute. "Why don't you invite Brooke and Peyton to come with us?"

Haley smiled, "I'll ask them."

Haley had stayed true to her word and had been hanging out with Brooke and Peyton much more these past few months. The girls did things just the three of them, and then sometimes Brooke and Peyton joined Nathan and Haley. The four had had some movie nights and Nathan had done quite well. Haley was proud. She knew that sometimes the three girls together were a bit much to take, but Nathan handled it like a pro. He had endured more than his fair share of chick flicks.

Nathan and Haley finished eating and Haley looked down at her watch. "We should get back, I don't want to be late to history again."

"Yeah, let's go."

As Nathan walked Haley towards her class Nathan remembered his appointment. "Oh yeah, Hales, do you think you can get a ride home from someone else today? I have to meet with my guidance counselor after school."

"No problem, I'm sure Brooke will take me. What's the meeting about?"

Haley hoped that Nathan wasn't in any kid of trouble. Everything had been going so good lately, she didn't want there to be any major bumps in the road.

"Jut about picking a college, nothing bad. I got into two different schools and my guidance counselor wants to talk about the pros and cons with each."

Haley realized just how little she knew about all of this. Nathan hadn't really talked about applying, it had all been done months ago and he hadn't said anything since. With all the drama with her parents and being grounded and the arrest, she and Nathan hadn't ever really gotten around to talking about next year.

"What schools did you get into?"

"UNC Greensboro and Syracuse."

Haley felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Greensboro was only a few hours away, but Syracuse was all the way in New York. She had known back when Nathan had applied that he was considering applying to that school, but she hadn't really thought much of it at the time. After all, she had only been with Nathan for a few months at that point and she really had no idea just how serious things were going to become.

"Are you leaning more towards one or the other?"

"Not really, I mean obviously Greensboro is close to home, and to you so that is important. But if I went to Syracuse I would get away from all this here. As much as I hate to admit it, word travels. Everyone knows about the drug dealing and the arrest, and if I went to school nearby then word would spread to there. I mean, there would obviously be other Tree Hill kids at Greensboro. And, I don't know, I kind of just want that part of my life over and done with. I go to court next month and my lawyer says that I will just get community service and probation. After that, I just want to move on ya know? I know that if I went to Syracuse I would really get a fresh start."

Haley nodded but didn't say anything. She was trying to digest everything Nathan had just said, and digest it quickly. She knew that she had to say something before she went into her class, that she understood or didn't, just something. Nathan kept looking at her awaiting some kind of response.

She did understand what he was saying, wanting a fresh start and everything. It made sense. If he went to school somewhere nearby there would be kids from Tree Hill there. Nathan's mistakes would follow him.

It wasn't that easy though. She didn't want him to leave her. She didn't want him to go far away. Haley knew, deep down in her gut, that Nathan would probably choose Greensboro. Despite the fact that he couldn't walk away from his past if he stayed, she knew that he would choose to stay and be with her. She just knew it.

Haley wasn't sure that that was what she wanted. She wanted Nathan to decide what was best from him, even if it was New York.

When they reached Haley's class she turned to Nathan. "It's your decision Nathan, all of it. No matter where you go we'll break up, long distance relationships never work. Make the decision that's best for you, we'll be over so don't let me be a factor in your decision."


	24. Butter Pecan

Chapter 24- Butter Pecan

Nathan just stood there, outside of Haley's classroom, in shock. He couldn't believe what Haley had just said. They would break up either way? Did he get any say in this decision? When had she decided this?

Nathan's mind was reeling, there was no way he could deal with this now. He just stood there, wondering what do. He thought about skipping out on the rest of the day but stopped himself. Nathan had vowed to do better, at everything. Skipping school would be a step backwards.

Nathan sucked it up and turned to head to class. As he started walking he spotted Brooke across the hall. He ducked his head, hoping to avoid her, but Brooke caught him anyways.

"Nathan, have you seen Haley? I've been trying to catch up with her forever!" Brooke exclaimed.

"Now's not a good time Brooke."

Nathan started to walk away but Brooke grabbed his arm.

"What's going on Nathan? Is Haley okay?"

Brooke was suddenly concerned for her best friend, maybe something was wrong and that was why Brooke hadn't been able to find her.

"God, does this everything in this world revolve around Haley? Haley is just fine, I mean isn't she always? Haley always knows what's best right? Haley always does what's best? It's all up to Haley!"

Brooke's eyes were as wide as saucers, she had never seen Nathan like this. He was rambling like a mad man. With each question he broached his face got redder and redder.

"Seriously you need to like take a deep breath or something. I don't really know what your problem is but yelling at me like that will do nothing but cause you more problems." Brooke's hands flew unto her hips, and she began to raise her voice at the end of that sentence. She wasn't sure what had landed her in Nathan's crossfire but she certainly wasn't going to just stand there and take it.

Nathan just stared at Brooke. He didn't know what to say to her. All he could think about were Haley's words, 'we'll break up.' Over and over he heard those words in his head.

Brooke just stood there staring at Nathan. She wasn't going to let him leave until he apologized.

Seeing that Nathan was in a daze Brooke coughed a little to try and pull him back to the real world. Nathan heard it and focused on Brooke again.

"Brooke, I'm sorry. I lost it for a second." Nathan's cheeks reddened more, but now with embarrassment. "Haley's fine, she's in her history class."

Hearing the bell ring, Brooke decided that that apology was good enough, "Okay, thanks. Bye Nathan."

Brooke walked away shaking her head. She wasn't sure what that was all about, but she knew who would know. Haley. That girl had some serious talking to do.

ooooOoooo

Haley was relieved to see Brooke waiting outside of her history class. Haley hadn't seen Brooke all day and was worried that she wouldn't be able to catch her in time to get a ride home.

"Brooke, hey, I'm glad you're here. Can I get a ride home from you? Nathan has a meeting after school and can't drop me off."

"You want to know a little something about Nathan? I'll tell ya. He's crazy Haley, he totally blew up at me in the hall a little while ago."

Haley just stood there looking shocked while Brooke waited impatiently. Brooke wanted an explanation and wasn't going to rest until she got one that satisfied her.

"What do you mean he blew up? What did he say? When did this happen?" Haley was surprised, Nathan wasn't one to 'blow up' as Brooke put it.

"I saw him before last period. He went off about you Haley, how the world revolves around you or something like that. How you make all the decisions. Honestly, it didn't make any sense to me. Did something happen?"

"Kind of. Listen Brooke, it's a long story. Can I tell you later?" Haley looked towards Brooke pleadingly. She didn't want to get into all of this now, in the middle of the hallway.

Brooke could tell that whatever had happened was going to upset Haley. "Fine, yeah, later. I'll take you home. But first, we are going to get some ice cream and talk about this. After all, I've never had a problem that ice cream couldn't solve." Brooke smiled, hoping to ease the mood.

"Thanks Brooke. I'll meet you at your locker after last period. I have to run though, I want to find Nathan."

With that Haley ran off leaving Brooke just standing there alone yet again. Brooke threw up her arms once again in frustration, what a day this had been.

ooooOoooo

Haley rushed towards Nathan's locker after last period. She had been trying to catch him in between the last few classes of the day but hadn't had any luck. She knew they had to talk about what she said.

Haley really hadn't thought that telling Nathan she thought they should break up when he went to school would upset him that much. After all, she was doing that for him. Why would he want a girlfriend who was still in high school when he would be at all these parties with pretty college girls? Haley thought he would want his freedom. Clearly, she was wrong. She couldn't believe he blew up at Brooke like that.

Walking past the guidance center on her way to Nathan's locker she peered in. She looked in just in time to see Nathan walking into his guidance counselor's office. Haley had just missed him. Talking about this was going to have to wait until tonight.

Haley pulled out her cell phone as she headed towards Brooke's locker. She sent Nathan a quick text message, _Call me after work…we have to talk._

Now all Haley had to do was wait until Nathan got out of work at 9:30 tonight. She knew it was going to be a long 7 hours until then.

As Haley walked up to Brooke's locker she saw her dark haired friend standing there holding one of her shoes in her hand.

"Brooke, what's wrong with your shoe?"

"Don't even get me started on that Haley. The stupid thing broke, this morning, before first period! I've been walking around all day with a busted shoe. Seriously Haley, life really sucks."

"That does suck Brooke."

Brooke slammed her locker shut and the two girls made their way to the parking lot.

"Is that all that's bothering you Brooke? I mean, besides the whole Nathan freak out thing?"

"Tutorgirl, that's why I love you, you always know just what I need. Everything is wrong. I have stupid detention this Saturday. Can you believe it? All over some stupid paper that I forgot."

Haley laughed to herself, but gave Brooke a look of sympathy at the same time. Brooke could be such a martyr sometimes. Haley was sure that this paper wasn't just a day late or something, but she wasn't going to let Brooke know that.

"That's crazy." Haley draped her arm over her best friend's shoulders. "You poor thing, it does sound like you had a bad day."

"I did, it was terrible, and your crazy boyfriend didn't help matters. Speaking of which, what's going on there?"

"It's definitely a conversation to have over ice cream." Haley reached out her window and banged on the side of Brooke's car, "Now let's go"

After ordering their ice cream the girls sat down on a bench outside the ice cream shop to talk.

"Seriously, Haley, now that you have your butter pecan, what happened to upset Nathan so much?"

"Well, he was walking me to class telling me about how he has to meet with his guidance counselor to talk about the two schools he got accepted to for next year, Greensboro and Syracuse, by the way. And I don't know, I heard Syracuse, thought about Nathan being in New York, and I guess I lost it. I told him to leave me out of the decision because no matter what we were going to break up."

"What?" Brooke was floored. She never in a million years thought that Haley would ever say that she and Nathan would break up. Nathan was Haley's world, nothing made her happier than he did. "Why would you say that?"

"I don't know. I guess I just wanted to make sure that he decided where he wanted to go to school. I want him to decide for himself, because of himself, I don't want him to stay nearby just because of me."

"That's all well and good Haley, wanting that for him, but how do you know he wants that for himself? How do you know that he doesn't want you to be a factor? He might, and guessing by his reaction does, think that you are important enough to be a factor. It isn't fair for you to take that choice away from him. Does that make sense?"

Haley nodded. "It does. I didn't mean to take the choice away from him by saying that. I guess I just wanted him to know that he should make the best choice for himself." Haley laughed a little bit, "I guess I could have put that some other way besides telling him we'll break up."

"I'll say. You need to talk to him Haley, explain yourself. The poor guy, he's probably all depressed thinking you're going to dump him when he goes to school, whether he likes it or not. You sure got yourself into a mess this time Haley. Better you than me though. It'll all work out fine, just talk to him." Brooke scooped the rest of her ice cream into her mouth, "Now, shoe shopping awaits us!"

ooooOoooo

"Hello?" Haley asked, hoping it was Nathan.

"Hey Hales."

"Nathan, hi. How was work?" Haley could already tell from the tone in his voice that Nathan still was not over what had happened earlier, he clearly sounded upset.

"It was fine. Same old." Nathan wasn't about to throw Haley any bones. He was still pretty shaken up about their conversation earlier and he wasn't about to bring it all up again, it was up to Haley.

"I want to talk about what happened earlier, when we were talking about school."

"Okay."

"Jeez Nathan, you're not making this very easy for me. I feel terrible for what I said, how I just burst out with all of that. I didn't mean it the way it sounded."

"Just how many ways are there to interpret 'we'll break up' Haley? Last I checked that only had one meaning." Nathan couldn't believe it, she didn't mean it the way it sounded, whatever.

"You're right, there isn't any other meaning. It wasn't really what I meant to say. I just wanted you to know that I want you to choose a school because it's right for you, I don't want to be part of that decision." Haley paused for a second, hoping Nathan would say something, she had no such luck. "I shouldn't have said what I did Nathan, I'm sorry."

Nathan was silent for another minute or so, then he exhaled loudly into the phone. "I know you're sorry Hales. It just scared me, a lot, thinking that we wouldn't be together anymore. But hearing you say how you want me to make the best decision for me, well I need to keep that in mind for myself. I do need to make sure that I make the decision that is best for me."

"It's just that, well, I don't want you to choose Greensboro so you can stay close to me and then hate it. I worry that you would then resent me in some way, because, at the root of it all, you went there for me."

"I hear you Hales. But what are we going to do, when I leave I mean?"

"Why don't we just deal with that when it happens? Honestly, I don't even want to think about it now. I just want you to make the right decision for you, that's all I care about now."

"I will Hales, don't worry. And yeah, we can deal with it all when it actually happens." Nathan paused. "Did you happen to talk to Brooke?"

"Yeah, I did. She's over it. Once I explained what happened she pretty much understood why you were upset like that."

"Good, I kind of did freak out at her. It's just that I love you Haley, and losing you, well, I don't even want to think about it."

"I know Nathan, I don't want to lose you either."


	25. Prom Dates

Chapter 25- Prom Dates

"So I was thinking, we should start dress shopping this weekend. Proms only like a month away and we want to have plenty of time to find the perfect dresses." Brooke had been waiting for junior prom for just about her whole life. Sure, there were homecoming dances and formals, but nothing compared to prom. It was in a ballroom, in a nice hotel. The ballroom would be decorated to the nines. To Brooke there was nothing better than junior prom, besides of course senior ball.

"We definitely should. There's this great boutique a few towns over that we should check out. We'll find more original stuff there, the last thing I want is a dress that every other girl is wearing." Peyton thrived on maintaining her originality. She wouldn't be happy with some dress from some department store that every other girl had the possibility of buying. For Peyton, it was all about being her own person.

"That sounds good, I have to be back by like 6:30 though, Nathan has court at 7:30." Haley decided she didn't really want to think about that right then, she would rather think about prom. "I'm so excited for prom. Nathan went to his last year with some girl he didn't really like that much, so I get to show him just how great it can be." Haley wanted everything to be just perfect for that night. Her dress, the limo, the after party, all of it.

"So we obviously know that Haley will be going with Nathan, but what about you P. Sawyer, who are you going to go with?"

"I'm not sure yet. I'll probably just go with one of the guys from work or something." Peyton didn't have a boyfriend, she had more important things to do. Not only was she one of the smartest girls in school, but she had her art to think about. Add a part time job to all that and there definitely wasn't any time left over for a boy. "What about you B. Davis? Who's your boy of choice."

Brooke's cheeks reddened as she opened her mouth to answer. "Well, funny you should ask that." Brooke turned to Haley, "There's something that has been going on with me that I haven't really told you about. I'm kind of going to the prom with….Lucas." Brooke braced herself for impact.

"Lucas, as in my Lucas? How did that happen?" Haley was shocked, as far as she knew, Brooke and Lucas barely knew the other existed.

"Formerly your Lucas, now my Lucas. We have kind of been dating these past few weeks."

"How did that happen and why didn't you tell me?" Haley crossed her arms. It wasn't like Brooke to keep secrets, especially boy secrets. Brooke was always more than willing to talk about her most recent conquests.

"It started a few weeks ago. Remember that day my shoe broke?" Brooke looked to Peyton and Haley who both nodded affirmatively. "Well I was looking for you at the tutoring center Haley, and Lucas was as well. I like ran right into him, literally, and almost flew off the handle at him, I mean duh, I was having the worst day ever then he almost knocks me on my ass in the middle of the hall. Anyways, he asked me what was wrong because he could tell I was upset, and after I told him he asked me if I wanted to go and get lunch with him at his mother's café. I figured that since the day already sucked so bad, I might as well get some free food out of it all. So we went. We had a great time, I swear we laughed the entire time. When we got back to school he asked me to go out with him that weekend. We did, and had a great time, and since then we have been kind of dating."

"Why didn't you tell me Brooke? I mean, don't get me wrong, I think it's great. Lucas is one of my favorite people, and obviously so are you. But why did you hide it?" Haley felt a little hurt that Brooke hadn't told her about it all. Haley had been making a serious effort to be there more for Brooke and Peyton, this seemed like it was all for nothing.

"I guess I didn't want to jinx it." Brooke shrugged her shoulders a little. "I mean, look how my relationships usually end up, always bad. But with Lucas it just seemed different, so I guess I wanted to give it time before I told everyone, make sure that it was for real and stuff."

"I personally think this is great. I don't know Lucas all that well, but from what you've said Haley, he seems like a great guy. And he obviously makes you happy Brooke." Peyton patted Brooke on the back, "I guess I'll forgive you for the withholding, since you seem so happy."

"I am so happy. He's great. We just have the best time together, he's easy to talk to too." Brooke turned to Haley, "But, I can't enjoy this fully if you are mad at me best friend."

Haley's face softened, "I'm not mad. I was a little hurt, but it makes sense, wanting to wait before you told everyone." A smile spread across Haley's face, "Just tell me that Peyton and I are the first to know?"

"Of course. Who else would I tell before my bestest friends?

ooooOoooo

"Nervous?" Haley asked as her and Nathan headed into the courthouse.

Haley had been dress shopping most of the afternoon with Peyton and Brooke and it had been a welcome distraction. Every time Haley thought about Nathan's court appearance she felt sick to her stomach. His lawyer had assured him that he wouldn't get anything more than some community service, and maybe probation for a year, but beyond that, nothing.

This didn't cause Haley to rest assured though. She knew that sometimes the worst could happen, that it was always a possibility. The worst for Nathan meant jail time.

"A little bit I guess. I just feel like worrying won't do any good ya know? Whatever happens happens, no amount of worry can change that. After all, my dad is paying really good money to my lawyer to make sure that I stay out of jail."

Nathan was thankful that his father had the resources to secure him such a good attorney. He knew that that was important, without a good attorney Nathan could be in for it. But, he had been assured that there would be no jail time and he had to believe it, he just had to.

When they entered the court room Nathan looked around for his father and lawyer. Spotting them he took off in their direction.

"Nathan, good to see you." His lawyer extended his hand to Nathan, who shook it. "Let's go and talk for a minute."

The lawyer eyed Nathan's father who took the cue, "Come on Haley, let's go and sit down."

"Okay Mr. Scott." Haley turned to Nathan, "Good luck, I'll see you after."

Haley sat there watching all of the people go up and talk to the judge. This wasn't how she thought court would be. I guess that she imagined it to be like a trial, where everyone would hear what was going on. But that wasn't the case at all.

After what seemed like hours Nathan was called to the bench. He and his attorney stood there talking to the judge for only about 10 minutes.

Finally, Nathan turned around and headed towards Haley and his father. When he got to their row he reached out and shook his lawyer's hand, "Thanks for everything." Haley could hear Nathan say.

As he approached her a smile broke out on his face. Reaching out he scooped her into his arms and hugged her tightly to him, "It's all going to be okay Haley."

Nathan took her hand and led her out of the courtroom, Nathan's father followed.

"Son, what happened?" Mr. Scott asked when they were outside of the courthouse.

"100 hours of community service and no probation. The only catch on the probation part is that I have to attend Narcotics Anonymous meetings once a week for a year."

"Son that's great. No probation. That's a load off of my mind." Mr. Scott patted Nathan on the back.

Haley was a little surprised about the meetings part, she hadn't even ever heard of Narcotics Anonymous, plus, she didn't think that Nathan had any addiction. Since he had been arrested he hadn't done drugs or even drank once. He didn't want to risk any more problems.

"Are you upset about having to go to these meetings? Since you don't have a problem I mean." Haley asked as she and Nathan got into his car.

"Not really. It's better than probation. Plus, I think I did have an addiction of some kind. Not to the drugs, but definitely to selling the drugs. Stopping that was really hard for me. I think that seeing people there who are addicted to the stuff I sold, well I'm pretty sure that that will be enough to show me how me selling can actually affect people negatively. It'll just be more reason to never do it again."

"I guess. I'm just surprised is all." Haley looked over to Nathan, he smiled at her and winked. Haley giggled, "This is good. Sorry, I'm just being weird. I'm glad it worked out this way Nathan, no jail, how great is that?"

"So great. Now, let's go and celebrate. Dinner on me, anywhere you pick."

ooooOoooo

After dinner Haley had Nathan drop her off at Lucas'. She had some talking to do with him.

After knocking on his door she stood there waiting as she heard footsteps approach.

"Hey Hales. What's up?" Lucas asked as he opened the door.

"Just came by to offer my congratulations." Haley walked past Lucas into his house. She turned around and faced Lucas, "Brooke told me."

"Pretty crazy isn't it? Me with Brooke Davis. It's amazing Hales, she's amazing. She really is like no other person I have ever met before."

"I know, she's a totally original person. I was kind of surprised when she told me because she's a little different than the normal blonde bimbos you date. Brooke will actually give you a run for your money." Haley teased.

"Oh she does that, has from day one. Trust me. The first day I took her out, we went to lunch at my mom's cafe. My mom comes over to take our order and stuff and introduces herself to Brooke and says how it's nice to meet her and all that. So guess what Brooke says?"

"What?" Haley knew it was going to be good.

"Brooke asked my mother if she had a pair of size seven stilettos she could borrow because the heel had broken off of one of hers." Lucas laughed just remembering it. "Well my mom says no, she doesn't have any stilettos, but she has an extra pair of flip flops. So my mom goes to get them and brings them back over to our table. Brooke says she's sorry, she can't wear those, they wouldn't match her outfit."

"That does sound like Brooke, she really is something. What did your mom say?" Haley knew that Lucas' mom was a little judgmental when it came to the girls that dated his son.

"She just laughed. That's the crazy part. She wasn't mad or thought Brooke to be ungrateful, she just laughed. That night when I came home I thought my mom would say something bad about her and the shoe thing, but she didn't. All she said was that Brooke was like a breath of fresh air. That's kind of how I feel too."

Lucas was grinning just talking about her and Haley thought it was so cute. Lucas didn't usually get like this, all giddy, when he was talking about girls. Haley was pretty sure that Brooke had gotten him hooked.

"I'm happy for you, both of you." Haley stood up to head home, it was starting to get late. "I have to get going, I'm beat."

"Okay, do you want a ride?"

"Nope it's a nice night, I'll walk. See ya later Lucas."

Haley walked over to the door and just as she started to walk out she turned around, "Break her heart and I'll kill ya." Haley said, winking.

Lucas laughed, "I'll keep that in mind."

Haley walked down the street towards her house thinking about how well things were going now. Nathan's court date had come and gone. Haley's parents had loosened up. Prom was coming. Brooke and Lucas were happy. It seemed, right then, that everything was right in the world for Haley James.


	26. I Turn To You

**Author's note: **The lyrics used in this chapter are from the Christina Aquilera song I Turn To You. I thought about what song go use in this chapter for a really long time, I really wanted it to capture the essence of Nathan and Haley's relationship, but I also needed it to be a song that could be chosen for a prom song. Thinking back to my high school years, they were always songs that were by pop stars, so I figured that this song should work in both way. Enjoy!

Chapter 26- I Turn To You

"Zip me up Peyton?" Haley asked as she walked towards her curly haired friend.

Haley, Peyton and Brooke had been getting ready at Peyton's for the last hour or so. The boys and the limo would be there shortly. The girls had gone all out for their prom. They had a full day at the spa earlier, facials, massages, manicures, and pedicures. They had had a blast together, and gotten some much needed relaxation time.

Peyton walked up behind Haley and zipped her all the way up and then turned her around. "Look at you Hales, you look amazing."

"Yeah you do, Nathan's gonna pop a big one when he sees you." Brooke winked at Haley.

"Brooke, that's terrible." Haley gave Brooke a mischievous smile, "Terrible, but, I do hope you're right."

Brooke walked over towards Peyton, "Look at you ya fake goldilocks, you look pretty hot yourself." Peyton had chosen a black dress, it was strapless and went into a full skirt that ended just above her knees.

"Thanks Brooke. Too bad I don't have a boyfriend to 'pop a big one' over me." Peyton teased.

"Oh don't worry, just because Brian isn't your boyfriend doesn't mean he won't get all hot and bothered when he sees you."

Peyton had decided to take one of her friends from work. Brian was a good guy, Peyton and him got along great so she knew that they would have blast together.

Haley backed away from the mirror to take her entire image in. She had finally decided on a pale purple satin dress. It had spaghetti straps that criss crossed down her back. Besides the straps, there was little material covering her back. The dress was floor length and clung to each and every one of Haley's curves. She had to applaud herself, she did look good. Best of all, she knew that Nathan would love it.

Brooke clapped her hands together when she heard the front door open downstairs.

"Brooke, are you up there?"

"Jeez, doesn't anyone knock around here anymore?" Peyton asked jokingly.

Lucas had learned quickly, there was no need to knock at Peyton's, if he did no one heard it anyways.

"I'll be right down…boyfriend." Brooke yelled down the stairs, she then turned back to Brooke and Haley, "Oh how I love the sound of that."

With that, Brooke was out the door heading down the stairs. As soon as Lucas saw her his jaw dropped. She looked absolutely amazing in a long red dress. Brooke had known that this was the dress for her as soon as she saw it. Not only did she look hot in red, but the intricate rhinestone pattern along the bottom of the dress made it special, not to mention the slit that went nearly all the way up her left leg made the dress look hot. She had hoped for this kind of reaction out of Lucas.

"I'll take by the jaw on the floor, that you like?" Brook asked as she turned around so he could inspect all of her.

"Uh huh." Lucas could barely mutter. There was no denying it, his girlfriend was about as hot as they got.

"You're lookin' pretty good yourself." Brooke said as she headed into the kitchen to get the boutonnière out of the fridge.

As Brooke went back into the front hallway she saw Nathan walked up Peyton's front steps. "Haley, your prince charming is here." Brooked yelled up the stairs.

A few minutes later Haley started down the stairs. As soon as Nathan saw her he couldn't find his words. She looked like a princess. He couldn't believe he was so lucky as to get to walk into any room with her on his arm.

"Say something Nathan, you're freaking me out." Haley teased as she walked towards Nathan, she raised up on tip toe and kissed Nathan lightly on the lips.

"Wow." Nathan just stood there, taking it all in.

Moments later Peyton headed down the stairs, just as Brian walked into the house.

"Peyton, you look great."

"Thanks Brian, so do you."

The six friends pinned on their boutonnieres and the boys slid the corsages on the girls' wrists. Just as they were finishing, the limo pulled up in front of the house.

With the help of Nathan's father, they had secured a Hummer limo. It was just as amazing as Nathan had promised.

As they all climbed in they were amazed at the sheer size of it. They all piled in and Nathan handed out a glass to everyone. He then popped open a bottle of sparking grape juice and poured it into everyone's glasses.

"Sorry I couldn't spring for champagne guys, my dad's still kind of weird about the whole arrest thing."

"Grape juice works for me." Brooke said as she held up her glass, "To a night that we will always remember."

The friend clinked their glasses together and drank their juice.

Brooke stood up and slid open the moon roof, sticking her head out of it. Peyton and Haley joined just as the limo pulled out into the street. Haley knew, right then, that this night was going to be everything she had hoped for.

ooooOoooo

_When I'm lost in the rain,  
In your eyes I know I'll find the light  
To light my way.  
And when I'm scared,  
And losing ground,  
When my world is going crazy,  
You can turn it all around._

"This been the most incredible night Hales." Nathan whispered into Haley's ear as they danced closely to the prom song, I Turn To You.

"I'm glad. I wanted it to be perfect."

"Haley, anything with you is perfect."

_And when I'm down you're there  
- pushing me to the top.  
You're always there,  
giving me all you've got._

Nathan looked down at Haley, as he started to speak she looked up into his eyes, "You have been a godsend this year Hales, really, I don't think that I could've gotten through everything that happened if it hadn't been for you always standing by my side."

"I'll always be right by your side Nathan, I promise you that."

_For a shield from the storm,  
For a friend, for a love  
to keep me safe and warm  
I turn to you.  
For the strength to be strong,  
For the will to carry on  
For everything you do,  
for everything that's true  
I turn to you._

"I get scared Haley, about next year, with us being so far apart I mean."

Haley felt tears spring to her eyes as they always did when he and Nathan discussed the future. He had decided to go to Syracuse, he thought that that was the best move for him and Haley supported that. She supported it, but didn't look forward to it. She and Nathan hadn't decided what was going to happen when he left, but she was quite sure they wouldn't stay together. It was just too great a distance.

"There isn't anything to be scared about. I'll always be a phone call a way, no matter what. Even if we decide that not being together is what's best, I'll still be there for you. It'll take more than moving to New York to get rid of me Scott."

_When I lose the will to win,  
I just reach for you and  
I can reach the sky again.  
I can do anything  
'Cause your love is so amazing,  
'Cause your love inspires me.  
And when I need a friend,  
You're always on my side  
Giving me faith  
taking me through the night_

"About that Hales. I know how much I love you now, so much that sometimes it hurts. The thought of losing you, it's too much to deal with. I just think, if I feel like this now, how will I feel after the summer, when we spend even more time together? How will I be able to walk away from this, from us?"

Haley could see tears forming in Nathan's eyes. That sight was enough to push her to the breaking point, she couldn't hold her tears in anymore.

"I know what I said before, but, if you don't want to walk away from this, then I don't either. If you think that we can do it, let's do it. We'll stay together. I don't care how far away you'll be. We have to really want that though Nathan, it won't be easy. Especially for you, you're going to walking into new experiences. A whole new world. What if I'm not enough for you?"

"That's impossible Haley, how could someone that means the world to me not be enough?"

_For a shield from the storm,  
For a friend, for a love  
to keep me safe and warm  
I turn to you.  
For the strength to be strong,  
For the will to carry on  
For everything you do,  
for everything that's true  
I turn to you._

"But what if love isn't enough? What if it isn't enough to keep us together? That's what scares me Nathan, that loving you as much as I do won't be enough."

Nathan took Haley's hand and held it up to his heart, "Do you feel that Hales? My heart, it's racing. That's what it always does when I'm around you. No one else does that to me, no one else can make my heart do this. That tells me that what we have is real. My love for you is something I feel so deeply that it actually moves my heart to beat faster. That love, that real love, it'll be enough, I promise you."

Haley rested her head back into Nathan's chest, as they danced to the music she could feel his heart racing to the same tempo as hers. Their love was real, they had their hearts to prove it. Anything else, it didn't matter.

_For the arms to be my shelter  
through all the rain,  
For truth that will never change,  
For someone to lean on,  
For a heart I can rely on through anything,  
For that one who I can run to...  
For a shield from the storm,  
For a friend, for a love  
to keep me safe and warm  
I turn to you  
For the strength to be strong,  
For the will to carry on  
For everything you do,  
for everything that's true  
I turn to you._


	27. I'll Be

**Author's note: **Well, I wasn't planning to get this update out today, but since all I can think about is the premier tonight I figured I might as well just keep OTH on the brain all day. The lyrics in this chapter are Edwin McCain's I'll Be. I don't like to use lyrics in two consecutive chapters like this, but they fit so I figured why not. Thanks for reading, and come on, take a second and review. Enjoy!

Chapter 27- I'll Be

"I can't believe you leave tomorrow." Haley said as she and Nathan were lie on a blanket staring up at the stars.

"I can't believe your parents agreed to letting you stay out all night with me."

Nathan and Haley had had a great summer together. Haley's parents had let them do as the pleased, as long as Haley made it home by curfew. They had been especially lenient these last few weeks in extending her curfew, and especially tonight, letting her stay out all night with Nathan.

"I guess they realize that after tonight they won't be worrying about what we're doing for months." Haley exhaled deeply. "I can't believe I won't see you for like three months."

"Yeah, I wanted to talk about that Hales…"

Haley jumped up, interrupting Nathan's thought, "Oooh, I love this song." Haley ran towards Nathan's car to turn up the radio as the first few notes of her most recent favorite song floated through the air.

As Haley walked back towards Nathan he got to his feet and extended his hand to Haley. She went into his arms willingly and the two slowly swayed to the music, in the middle of the empty field.

_The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful,  
Stop me and steal my breath.  
Emeralds from mountains thrust toward the sky  
Never revealing their depth._

"It kills me that I won't get to look into these beautiful brown eyes of yours for three whole months. I hope we can do this Hales, I really do. I'm so scared though. I don't know how I will be without you by my side, I worry that I won't be strong enough."

_Tell me that we belong together,  
Dress it out with the trappings of love.  
I'll be captivated,  
I'll hang from your lips,  
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above_

"You'll be strong enough Nathan, I know it. But if you can't be, or if I can't be, just because we might not be able to be together while you're gone doesn't believe that we don't belong together. People who belong together always find their way back in the end. And Nathan, we do, we belong together. We just need to remember that, once these next four years are over, even if we can't survive it, we never know what'll happen then."

Haley had to keep telling herself that. She had to be realistic, she had to realize that there was the possibility that her and Nathan wouldn't be able to go through with this long distance relationship, it might be too much for both of them. The only thing that kept her going was her belief that she really, truly did belong with Nathan, whatever else happened would happen, but in the end she knew that she would be with him.

_I'll be your crying shoulder,  
I'll be love's suicide.  
I'll be better when I'm older,  
I'll be the greatest fan of your life._

"You're right Hales, I know you are. It's just that I can't imagine not seeing you everyday anymore. I just don't know how that will be. What will be my reason to get out of bed on those days when all I want to do is lie there? I used to get up to see you, but now what will I have?" Nathan asked pleadingly. "What will I have without you?"

"You'll have your future Nathan, our future. Going to college will give you a good future, it'll give you a good life. You need to get out of bed for that. You need to make a good life for yourself, I need to make a good life for myself. That's the only way that we can have a good life together. We have to be able to be happy on our own, we have to be able to have our own lives."

Haley started to cry as she spoke these words. She had been trying to be strong, but she couldn't do it anymore. All she wanted to do was sit there and cry and have Nathan hold her. She wanted to cry for all of the days she wouldn't get to spend with him, all of the days that he wouldn't be there to hold her when she needed it, or to cheer her up when she needed it.

_Rain falls angry on the tin roof  
As we lie awake in my bed.  
You're my survival, you're my living proof.  
My love is alive not dead._

"I'm sorry Nathan, I wanted to be strong but it's so hard. It's so hard to know that I have to say good bye to you tomorrow morning."

Haley's tears turned to sobs and Nathan held her even closer.

"It's okay to be scared and upset Hales. Just be open with me about it. We need to be able to talk to each other during this, we need to be able to communicate, that's the only hope we have of keeping it together. If we want our love to survive we have to work for it. We have to both want to work for it Hales, we really do. I need to know that this is what you want, being with me is what you really want. If you aren't sure, tell me now Hales." Nathan could feel tears beginning to form in his eyes. He was absolutely terrified that Haley would say she didn't think she could do it, she didn't think she could be with him when he was that far away.

_Tell me that we belong together.  
Dress it out with the trappings of love.  
I'll be captivated,  
I'll hang from your lips,  
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above_

"Of course it's what I want Nathan, why, is it not what you want?" Haley felt as though her heart had stopped beating, as though someone had reached into her chest and they were squeezing the life out of it.

"It is what I want Hales, I just don't want to make you do something you're unsure of. Listen to me when I say this Haley, this will hurt us both, being so far away from one another. I think the pain is natural when you love someone this much. But if you're ever unhappy you need to tell me, unhappy with how things are with us. Missing each other is natural, but being unhappy isn't. Promise me you'll tell me if you're ever unhappy, promise me that Haley."

"I promise Nathan, but I don't think that's possible. As long as I'm with you I can't be unhappy."

_I'll be your crying shoulder,  
I'll be love's suicide.  
I'll be better when I'm older,  
I'll be the greatest fan of your life._

Nathan just held Haley close. As he did he thought back to his life before her, he thought about all the things he did and how it all seemed so pointless. It was pointless, until he met Haley nothing meant anything. His life had seemed like it was something he just couldn't escape from.

_I've been dropped out, burned up, fought my way back from the dead.  
Tuned in, turned on, remembered the things that you said _

Haley tried to lose herself in Nathan's embrace, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't stop her tears. Haley had always thought she was happy before she met Nathan, but she wasn't. She didn't really know what happiness was until she met Nathan. She was scared that each day now wouldn't compare to the ones that she had with him.

Haley decided not to think about it. All she was going to think about was enjoying her last night with Nathan, everything else would just have to wait.

_I'll be your crying shoulder,  
I'll be love's suicide.  
I'll be better when I'm older,  
I'll be the greatest fan of your life._

ooooOoooo

Nathan woke up and looked down at Haley, she was curled up right against him. Nathan just smiled at her, she looked so beautiful, so peaceful. As much as the sight of her like that brought a smile to his face, it also brought an ache to his heart.

Nathan knew what happened now. He would wake Haley up and they would gather up their stuff, then he would drive her to dance. Then he would have to do the hardest thing imaginable, he would have to get in his car and drive away from her, knowing that he wouldn't see her again for three months. The thought of that almost made him physically ill. Still, he knew what he had to do.

"Hales, it's time to get up, we have to go soon."

Nathan shook Haley lightly, her eyelids fluttered and then opened, revealing her big brown eyes.

"Hey you." Haley said as she stretched out in the bed.

"I let you sleep longer than I should, we have to leave in like 10 minutes if you're going to be on time."

Haley nodded and got out of bed. She reached into her bag and threw on some clothes.

"I'll change at the studio, let's go now."

Nathan nodded solemnly as he pulled on some shorts and a t-shirt.

The drive to Haley's dance studio was silent. The young lovers did not exchange a word, they just sat there, eyes affixed on the road ahead of them. As soon as they pulled into the parking lot tears started to stream down Haley's face.

Nathan stopped the car and got out and walked around to Haley's side. He opened the door and reached over her, unhooking her seatbelt. Then, he pulled her out of her seat and into his arms. As soon as he wrapped his arms around her he began to cry as well.

"I never thought this would be so hard." Haley choked out in between sobs.

"I know Hales, I know. I never thought that letting someone go could hurt this much, I really think that my heart is breaking."

Nathan took a few deep breaths trying to calm himself. He needed to do that for Haley, if she kept sobbing he wouldn't ever be able to let her go. He would never be able to drive away from her.

Haley let Nathan hold her tightly as she took deep breaths in order to calm herself down.

"I guess I should go inside now. Have a safe trip, call me as soon as you get there." Haley said, knowing that she should start to pull herself away, but she couldn't. Not yet. "I love you Nathan."

"I love you too." Nathan held her as tight as he possibly could. He leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Forever together but miles apart, maybe in distance but never in heart."

Haley knew that that was when she was supposed to walk away. It took everything she had, but she somehow managed to disentangle herself from Nathan and she headed towards the studio.

Haley turned around to see Nathan getting into his car, and she watched as he drove away Haley waved and then collapsed to her knees in the middle of the parking lot, her body overcome with sobs.

Suddenly, she felt arms around her, holding her tight. Then, another set of arms. Haley looked up and saw Brooke and Peyton both there holding her.

"He's gone, what am I going to do?" Haley managed to choke out in between sobs.

"It's okay Hales, let it out. We'll be here for as long as you need." Brooke squeezed her best friend tightly as she spoke.

Right there, in the middle of the parking lot, Haley sat there sobbing while her two best friends in the whole world held her tightly, trying to make her feel as though her whole world wasn't caving in around her.


	28. Emptiness

**Author's note:** Thanks so much for the reviews, they were the most I have gotten for any one chapter. I really poured myself into that chapter, and it seems it worked, I'm glad that you guys liked it. This story has a quite a few different arcs (for lack of a better word), that was the end of the first one, now starts a different arc for Naley, being apart. Just something to note, I have mentioned before in the story that Haley, Brooke and Peyton knew each other from dance. Dance is an important part of Haley's life in this story, just as singing is in OTH, but I promise, Haley will never leave Nathan for dancing. I just needed to give her some kind of outlet, and I didn't want to use singing so I tried for something new. Enjoy!

Chapter 28- Emptiness

As Haley pulled herself from the edge of sleep, she could feel the sunlight making it's way through the cracks in the blinds covering her window. Normally the feeling of the sunlight on her would warm her, but this morning it did no such thing.

Gazing over at the alarm clock, Haley was surprised to see that it said 11. She had been up most of the night crying, finally finding sleep around 6 am. It had been a fitful slumber, but sleep nonetheless.

Haley laid in bed thinking about what the day ahead held for her. She had promised Brooke and Peyton she would go shopping with them, and then the girls had dance class that evening. Normally a shopping trip with her best friends would help urge Haley out of bed, but today, even that wasn't motivation enough.

Nathan had been gone for three days now. Three whole days and Haley felt as though she had cried for most of those days. Everything she did made her think of Nathan, and thinking of Nathan gave her an overwhelmingly empty feeling. No matter what she tried to do, she couldn't escape that feeling. She felt as though she was a shell of a person, she felt as though her heart had left her body, as though her heart was now in Syracuse and no matter what she did, she couldn't get it back.

Haley's parents were concerned for their daughter, they had never seen her so upset. They had tried everything, taking her out to her favorite restaurant, giving her money for new school clothes, letting her use their car whenever she had asked, but none of it worked. None of it elicited a smile from their daughter. Haley was one to wear her heart on her sleeve, and now, she was wearing her pain there as well.

Haley rolled over and closed her eyes tightly, willing sleep to take over again. It was only when she slept that she couldn't feel this pain. Haley had been afraid, the first night that Nathan was gone, that her pain would follow her into her dreams. This wasn't the case though, as Haley hadn't dreamt once since Nathan had gone. Not only had he taken her heart, but Haley also felt as though he taken her dreams.

Haley heard footsteps approaching her door. She prayed that it wasn't one of her parents, coming in to try and cheer her up again. She appreciated the gestures, but it wasn't working. Haley just wanted to be alone.

Haley heard a soft knock on her door, and then her mother peered in.

"There's mail for you Haley. It's a letter, from Nathan."

Haley sat herself up in bed and a smile spread across her face. Haley had spoken to Nathan briefly the night he arrived at school, but he had to get settled in and she knew that so their conversation had been only a few minutes long. She had not spoken to him since. They had agreed that they would not talk everyday, if they did that they would never learn to let go enough to live their own lives.

Haley's mother brought the letter over to her daughter and turned and left the room, she knew that Haley would want to be alone.

Haley smiled at the familiar handwriting on the outside of the envelope. It warmed her whole body just to see that. Taking a deep breath she tore the envelope open and pulled out the paper that lay inside.

As Haley opened the folded paper she lay back against her pillow, allowing herself to become complete engulfed in Nathan's words:

_Hales,_

_I'm not even halfway to school yet, and I already miss you more than I ever thought possible. Driving away from you this morning was, without a doubt, the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life. I wanted to turn around so many times, turn around and go back to you and hold you in my arms forever. I don't know how I stopped myself, but I did. Maybe it was the thought that this was for the best, that we need to follow our own dreams, do what is best for ourselves, that is the only way that we can truly give ourselves over to one another completely someday. I don't know how much I believe that yet Hales, but I keep trying to convince myself._

_About an hour outside of Tree Hill I'll Be came on the radio. The opening notes of it brought tears to my eyes, but then I thought of you, standing there in front of me telling me that we belong together. That image of you, remembering you speaking those words to me, it brought a sudden feeling of calm over me. I knew that if I could hold onto those memories of you, and pull them out when I needed them, then I could get through this. _

_I want you to find a way to get through this Hales. I know that you have probably spent these past days crying incessantly, and trust me baby I feel your pain. But, I don't want that Hales, I don't want you to be sad like that. I want you to continue on with your life. I want you to spend time with Brooke and Peyton, spend time with Lucas. I want you to dive right back into school, into tutoring. _

_I know that these things might not be enough to calm your soul and allow your heart to start aching. These past few hours, while I've been driving, I've been thinking about what can be your rescue from this heartache. Mine are our memories, I can feel them so strongly that it is almost as though you're sitting right here next to me, holding my hand and telling me that everything's going to be all right. I can lose myself in the memories and escape the pain. I know that that might not be the best way for you to feel better though, but I think I came up with something._

_I remembered that poster in your room, the one with the ballerina and this quote along the bottom;_

"_Work like you don't need the money, love like you've never been hurt, and dance like no one is watching. Live each day as though it's your last." _

_That made me realize Hales, let dance be your escape. Pour your heart and soul into it Hales, lose yourself in it. I've seen you do that, I've seen how the music and the movements take you over. So let that happen, let that be your escape from the pain. _

_Dance for me Hales, dance for us, but most importantly, dance for yourself._

_Love always and forever, _

_Nathan_

Tears filled Haley's eyes as she read his words. He was absolutely incredible. Nathan loved her so much that he had searched for a way for her to deal with the pain. Even more incredible than his search, was what Nathan found. Nathan found what might be the only escape for Haley.

There were only two things in life that made Haley feel free, Nathan and dancing. It only made sense that when she ached so badly for one that she should lose herself in the other.

Haley climbed out of bed and headed for the shower, feeling as though she had a new lease on life. She could do this, she just had to find her strength in new found ways.

ooooOoooo

Nathan walked into his dorm room and breathed a sigh of relief that his roommate wasn't there. He was a great guy, and Nathan knew that they would get along just fine, but right now Nathan needed to be alone.

Nathan had been walking back to the dorm after class and there had been this girl walking in front of him who he thought looked just like Haley. The way she moved, her long hair tumbling half way down her back, the resemblance from the angle was uncanny. Nathan had shut his eyes and taken a deep breath, knowing that when he opened his eyes he would realize that that girl wasn't Haley, and he was right. When he opened his eyes it was clear that the girl in front of him was not Haley.

As he lay down on his bed Nathan was overcome with a feeling of emptiness. This feeling had become all too familiar over the last few days. Shutting his eyes, he willed himself to find a memory to calm himself.

_Flashback_

_Nathan was walking through the back room of the store, waiting for Haley to finish changing in the bathroom so they could leave. It was Christmas Eve and although working sucked, at least they were doing it together. Nathan now had to drive Haley over to her Aunt's house where the rest of her family was and then he could head home to enjoy dinner with his family. _

"_Hales, did you fall in or something?" Nathan said as he cracked open the door. _

"_I'll be out in a minute, I'm just changing. You try putting on pantyhose!" Haley yelled from inside._

_Nathan leaned back against the wall, knowing all he could do was wait._

_Finally, Haley emerged from the bathroom. She looked gorgeous in a red off the shoulder top and black knee length skirt. Nathan smiled as she walked towards him._

_Much to his surprise, Haley pushed him up against the wall behind him and began to kiss him passionately. Nathan couldn't believe it, he and Haley had agreed to keep their relationship as under wraps as possible while they were at work. _

_After a few minutes of passionate kisses, Haley pulled away and looked up at Nathan smiling, "I've always wanted to do that here."_

_With that Haley turned and headed for the door, realizing Nathan wasn't behind her she turned around, "You coming?"_

_Nathan nodded, and began walking quickly to catch up to Haley, hoping that the cold air on the other side of the door would do the same as a cold shower in the way of quelling the excitement that Haley had just brought on him._

_End flashback._

Nathan smiled at the memory of that day. That was before all the drama had happened, before his arrest, before her parents restricting the time they spent together.

Nathan could feel the memory so strongly that he could almost feel Haley's lips on his, he could feel his excitement stirring at the thought of the softness of her lips.

Rolling over Nathan closed his eyes, willing sleep to wash over him to he could dream of Haley, dream of being with Haley, where everything made sense and this feeling of extreme emptiness didn't exist.

ooooOoooo

"Great class girls, I'll see you tomorrow. Haley, can I see you for a minute?" Haley's dance teacher asked as the girls began to file from the room.

Looking towards Brooke, Haley shrugged her shoulders, she didn't know what was going on.

Brooke mouthed to her, 'It's okay, I'll wait for you.'

Haley headed over to her teacher, "Miss Susan, is everything okay?"

"Yes Haley. I just wanted to talk to you quickly about your senior solo, you're the only senior who hasn't yet chosen a song. Did you have anything in mind?"

Haley slowly nodded, hoping that she would be able to come up with the perfect song in the next few seconds.

Haley then remembered Nathan's words earlier, that she should use dance as her escape from the pain. That she should put her heart and soul into her movements, letting them and the music wash over her and allow her to forget her pain.

Then she knew, knew what the perfect song was. She knew it was the only song that she would be able to really let herself go.

"Well Haley, what song?"

"I'll Be, by Edwin McCain. That's my senior solo."


	29. It Ain't Easy

Chapter 29- It Ain't Easy

Haley lay on her bed anxiously awaiting the phone to ring. Nathan had been gone for about three weeks now, and Haley had adjusted as best she could. She had managed to keep busy preparing for her senior year, but there was still a lot of down time where she was able to do nothing besides think of Nathan.

Haley was looking forward to starting her senior year, she knew that then she would be busy enough that she wouldn't think about Nathan so much. She knew that time would quickly pass and, before she knew it, it would be Thanksgiving and Nathan would be home to visit. Haley couldn't wait.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of waiting, the phone ring. Haley quickly scooped it off the bed next to her, "Hello?"

"Hey Hales."

Haley smiled at the sound of his voice. "Nathan, hi. I'm so glad it's you."

"Sorry I'm a little late. I had to finish up some reading before I could call."

"It's no big deal. You're there for school, remember? Schoolwork comes first, not too much ahead of me though, remember that." Haley teased.

Nathan laughed at Haley, "Right, not too much ahead of you. So…how's things?"

"Things are good. Brooke, Peyton and I spent all day at the mall today stocking up on new school clothes."

"Oh yeah, tomorrow's the big day. Are you excited?" Nathan never thought he would say it, but his girlfriend truly did enjoy school.

"Kind of. I'm not looking forward to this class load, but I'm looking forward to being busy again. I think it'll help with all this ya know?"

"Yeah, I do. There are days I don't know how you do it. I've been going non-stop since I got here and some days I think that that is the only thing keeping me from catching the next plane home. I don't know how I would be if I had more free time to miss you, I don't think that I'd be so okay."

Nathan knew that this was harder on Haley than it was on him. After all, Nathan had this whole new life that he was adapting too. His days were filled with classes and studying and much of his evenings were filled with clubs and intramural sports. Most nights he studied or hung out with his new friends. Even on the weekends he managed to stay pretty busy. Still, no matter how busy he was, there were those times were all he thought about was Haley and how much he missed her.

"I've found stuff to do to stay busy. Brooke and Peyton have been great too, coming over and keeping me entertained. Still though, school will be a welcome relief. It'll be weird to be there without you though. I can barely remember how things were before I was with you."

Haley had been a little nervous about all that. Before Nathan she was just Haley James, tutor and honors student. Sure, Haley had friends, but she certainly wouldn't be considered popular. Most people probably didn't even know of her, before Nathan that is. Once Haley started dating Nathan it all changed.

Almost everyone at Tree Hill High knew Nathan, so by association, most everyone at Tree Hill High came to know Haley. School became a totally different place to her. People said hi to her in the hallway, she got invited to parties, it was totally different. But now, how would it be? Would she go back to being the person she was before, or would the notoriety of being Nathan Scott's girlfriend linger? Haley was nervous to find out.

"You'll be fine. It's senior year, just sit back and enjoy it, it goes way too fast."

"Yeah, you're right. And don't worry, I will enjoy it. So what about you? How's school and stuff?"

"School's good. Classes are starting to pick up, I have a lot of reading to get through every night. I've been looking into different fraternities too, rush is coming up. I figure I'll participate in that and see if any of the fraternities want me."

"I'm sure they will."

The mention of fraternities made Haley nervous. She had heard stories of frat parties, and most of them hadn't been good. Many fraternity brothers had reputations of hooking up with tons of girls. Haley wondered how Nathan would resist that temptation. Haley worried that Nathan wouldn't be able to resist, and that things would happen and he wouldn't tell her. If Nathan didn't tell her she wouldn't ever know. That scared her, knowing that Nathan could do whatever he wanted and Haley would never know. Unlike with Haley, where anything she did would surely get back to Nathan. There was no stopping the Tree Hill rumor mill.

"Well, we'll see. Sorry Hales, but I have to run. I promised some of the guys on my floor I'd play a game of volleyball with them tonight. I hope that's okay?" Nathan felt a little guilty about getting off the phone so quickly.

"It's no big deal. Go have fun. I'll talk to you later."

"Thanks Hales. Good luck tomorrow, I'll call you tomorrow night to see how it went. Love you."

"Love you too, bye Nathan."

Haley hung up and phone and just sat there looking at it in her hand. As happy as she was so have gotten to talk to Nathan at all, she was a little upset that they hadn't been able to talk for longer.

Haley had imagined she and Nathan having conversations long into the night, especially since they didn't talk everyday. But, the reality of it was that they didn't talk long at all, usually five, ten minutes at the most, and only a couple times a week. She knew that it was because Nathan was busy, just as Haley would be once school started, but she couldn't shake the feeling that it was more than that. Haley hated to admit it, but she wasn't feeling so confident about it all anymore.

ooooOoooo

Brooke, Peyton and Haley headed into the school arm in arm.

"I so love my parents having bought me this car, now we get to arrive in style everyday."

Brooke's parents had bought her a brand new baby blue VW Beatle. It was Brooke's pride and joy. She swore that it would make their senior year that much better.

Peyton looked down at her watch, "I'm going to swing by the art wing before I head to homeroom. This class I wanted to get into was blocked out and I want to see about talking the teacher into letting me in anyways."

"Good luck with that." Haley knew first hand how tough it could be to get into the classes you really wanted.

"Hey, if all else fails just tell him you'll do anything, if you know what I mean." Brooke shot Peyton a look that could only be interpreted as purely scandalous.

"Yeah right Brooke, I'm sure that'll work on _Mrs_. Baxter. Anyways, I'm off, see you ladies at lunch."

"Bye." Haley waved to Peyton as she walked away and then turned to Brooke. "Well Ms. Davis, I'm going to stop here, I'm going to swing by the tutoring center on my way to homeroom, but I'll see you at lunch."

"Okay, I should go find that hot boyfriend of mine anyways. Later TutorGirl." Brooke headed off in the direction of Lucas' locker.

Over the summer Brooke and Lucas had gotten hot and heavy. As much as Brooke swore that she didn't do serious, it seemed that that was the case. Haley couldn't be happier for Brooke, it was rare that she found a guy she thought was worth her time to date, and especially for this long. Before Lucas, Brooke's relationships usually capped off at about a week. But now, she's been with Lucas for almost four months, it was quite the record for Brooke. Haley had to praise Lucas for his patience, Haley knew that Brooke wasn't always easy to deal with, but Lucas managed to do it anyways, and usually with a smile.

Haley ducked into the bathroom on her way to the tutoring center. She was relieved to see it empty, she wanted a few minutes of quiet before the full craziness of the day set in.

Haley heard the door open and what sounded like a bunch of girls walk in.

"So, what's the word on Nathan and that chick?" Haley heard one of the girls say.

"I heard they're still together."

"Ha," One of the girls laughed, "Like that'll ever work out. I mean seriously, look at her and then think of what Nathan must be surrounded by. Hot willing college girls, why would he stay faithful. I know I sure wouldn't, college boys, they're so hot."

"You are so right, there's no way he's not going to cheat on her. I give it a month, then it'll all be over. She'll go right back to being a nobody."

Haley's jaw dropped as she listened to these girls totally ripping apart her relationship with Nathan.

"You know the best part of that?" One of the girls asked. "If he dumps her he'll be totally available to hook up with when he's home on breaks. Ooooh, Nathan Scott, that boy is a dream come true."

All the girls laughed loudly at that comment.

Haley just stood there in the stall, not moving. She was mortified, she didn't want the girls to know that she had heard them. Even more than mortified though, she was devastated. Were they right? Would Nathan cheat on her? What if he had already? He was busy a lot, he barely had time to call her. Haley didn't know where he was most nights. Haley's mind ran wild with the possibilities.

Finally Haley heard the girls walk out of the bathroom. She waited a few seconds and then opened the stall. Walking over to the mirror she looked at herself. Examining her long brown hair that she did little with, and her lack of make up, she groaned in disgust. Who was she kidding, why would Nathan stay with her when he was so far away and surrounded by all those hot college girls? What had Haley been thinking? There was no way this was going to work.

ooooOoooo

Haley heard the phone ring, but was in no hurry to pick it up.

"Haley, the phone's for you, it's Nathan."

Haley reluctantly climbed off the bed and headed over towards the phone. Picking it up she felt tears cloud her eyes. She had been thinking about what happened in the bathroom all day and it was doing nothing but upsetting her.

"Hey Nathan."

"Hey Hales. How was the first day?"

"Fine, thanks." Haley tried to sound happy, but knew that she wasn't doing a very convincing job.

"You don't sound too sure about that. What's up Hales?"

"Nothing, it's no big deal. It was just a long day. I just did a lot of thinking, realized some stuff ya know?"

"Like what?" The tone in Haley's voice worried Nathan, but nothing prepared him for what he would hear next.

"I don't know, that maybe this can't work, maybe we should break up."


	30. Something's Gotta Give

**Author's note:** Surprisingly I wasn't shot for the ending to that last chapter. Let's hope I can keep that up….enjoy! Thanks to those who review…keep it coming.

Chapter 30- Something's Gotta Give

"I'm sorry, you what?" Nathan thought he must have misheard Haley or something.

"I think we should break up, I'm not sure I can do this." Haley had been thinking about what to do about Nathan all day, since she heard the girls in the bathroom.

"We just talked yesterday Hales, why didn't you say something about this then? What happened between then and now to make you feel this way?"

"I don't know, I just worry, ya know? About you being there and me being here, I mean you're there with all those college girls, who's to say you won't want them over me, your high school girlfriend?"

Haley bit her lip as she waited for his response.

"Because I love you, not them, that's why I don't want them. I have everything I've ever wanted with you. I've told you this before though, why won't you believe me? Don't you trust me Hales?"

"It's not that I don't trust you, it's that I don't trust them Nathan."

"You know I hate it when people say that. If you trust me then trust that should they try something, I'll push them away. Whether or not you trust them doesn't matter, all that matters is if you trust me. So tell me Haley, do you trust me?"

Nathan realized he was actually pretty nervous as he awaited her response. He didn't have a good feeling about what she was going to say, no matter how hard he tried to shake off that bad feeling, it wasn't going away.

"I guess not." Haley answered quietly. "I guess that this is all just too much for me to handle. I worry that you'll find some girl you're interested in and you'll just start something with her and not even tell me."

"Why would you think that Hales, I mean honestly, have I ever done anything to give you a reason to not trust me?"

Nathan couldn't say much else, he was too hurt by the fact that Haley said she couldn't trust him. After all they had been through together, all they had gone through to be together, how could she honestly say she didn't trust him?

"I guess not, but it's just, ugh, I don't know Nathan. I don't know what I think, but I do know I've been confused. Then I heard these girls talking, and I don't know, it just got the best of me and I flipped out."

"What girls talking? What did they say?"

"Just these girls in the bathroom, they were saying that you and I wouldn't stay together, and that you'd cheat on me. I'd been thinking it, but to hear someone else say it just made it worse."

Nathan had worried that something like this would happen. He knew how people gossiped in Tree Hill. Nathan had hoped though that people wouldn't subject Haley and his relationship to it.

"Hales, you can't listen to them. What do they know? The only people who get to judge our relationship is us, that's it. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks or says. Does that make sense?"

"It makes sense Nathan, but it doesn't make me feel better. I just think that there has to be some kind of better solution for this. Some way that we can be together but that I don't have to worry about what's going on with you down there, you know?"

"I don't know what you're getting at Haley."

Haley sat there, trying to figure out how best to say it. She thought it was the only solution, the only way that she wouldn't have to lose Nathan, but also wouldn't have to worry all the time.

"What if we had an open relationship? Like we're still together, but we can see who we want to see."

"What does that do? I hate it when people do that crap. You're either together or you're not, there isn't any in between."

Nathan thought her idea was ridiculous. How would that solve anything? She's still worry about him hooking up with other girls. Then he'd have to worry about her hooking up with other guys as well.

"I guess it just makes me feel better. Then I know that I'm not holding you back, that you have the freedom to do what you want to do, but you still have me. I think that this is what I want Nathan."

Haley wasn't going to back down on this. She had thought about it all day and it seemed like the only logical thing to do. If it didn't work, they could go from there, but it seemed like a plausible solution.

Nathan exhaled loudly into the phone, "Fine Hales, I don't really know what it'll do, but if you think it'll make you feel better I'll try it. I'm going to be honest with you though, I think that it won't help anything. I think you'll worry just as much, and I think it will make knowing where we stand a really difficult issue to figure out. But that doesn't matter, all I want is for you to be okay with this, so fine, we'll have an open relationship."

Haley breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you Nathan, this is what I want. I think it'll make me feel better. I think it'll give you more freedom. Let's just try it okay?"

"I said okay, if it's what you want. I need you to promise me one thing Haley. Promise me you won't listen to what other people say about you and me, remember, only you and I know the truth. Promise me that okay?"

"Okay Nathan, I won't listen to what other people say about us from now on, I promise. I'm going to get going now Nathan, I have tons of homework to do, but I'll talk to you again soon, right?"

"Of course. Night Haley, I love you."

"Love you too, bye Nathan."

Haley leaned back on her pillow and pulled her knees to her chest. She had thought she was doing the right thing, she was giving Nathan freedom, now she wouldn't have to worry about him breaking up with her because he wanted to be with some other girl. Now he could do that and be with Haley as well. Haley sat there hoping she was right, she had to be, she couldn't lose Nathan, not ever.

ooooOoooo

Nathan walked quickly, head down, hands stuffed in his pockets. He was heading towards a party, it was his first party since he and Haley had "opened up" their relationship. He had been debating all day about whether or not he should hook up with another girl.

Girls had flirted with Nathan from the first day he stepped onto the campus. They flirted with him everywhere, in the dorm, in classes, at parties, but Nathan always shot down their advances. He always told the girls that he had a girlfriend back home, one he loved and missed very much. Somehow, telling the girls this only made them want him more.

The girls would see his adoration for Haley as a sign that he was sensitive, they would sit there asking him about her and their relationship. He was shocked to find that having a girlfriend caused him to have all these girl friends. It was obvious to Nathan that many of the girls were interested in him, but they never made any kind of moves because of Haley. Nathan wondered if he was ready to change that.

The thought of being with another girl was a difficult one for Nathan to grasp. Being with Haley made him forget any of the girls before her, and that made Nathan feel as though she had been his one and only. Nathan really wasn't sure if he was ready to change that.

Walking into the party he saw a bunch of people from his dorm over in a corner hanging out. After filling his cup from the keg, Nathan headed over in their direction.

"Scott, what's going on?" Nathan's friend Tony reached out to bump fists.

Tony lived down the hall from Nathan and the two had become fast friends. They had a lot in common and both played the same intramural sports. Tony had expressed interest to Nathan about also pledging to a fraternity, so the two had agreed to pledge the same one if possible.

"Not too much." Nathan gazed around the room, "Looks like a pretty decent party."

"Yeah, it's not too bad." Tony confirmed.

Nathan looked over at his friend Amy, he was pretty sure she had already realized that something was bothering him, judging by the way she was looking at him. Amy lived on the floor below Nathan. Nathan couldn't deny that she was a pretty girl, she was blonde and petite. She played soccer so she was in great shape. The two had gone running together quite a few times. They had just clicked from the get go, and Nathan knew that she had an easy time reading him.

When Nathan made eye contact with Amy she gave him a questioning glance and then pointed to a vacant corner of the room, suggesting they go over and talk. Nathan nodded and the two excused themselves from the group.

"Spill it Nathan, what's going on?"

"You know what Amy, I really don't want to talk about this here, mind if we go back to my room? I guess I'm not really in the partying mood tonight."

"Sure, let me just go tell my roommate."

Nathan watched Amy walk away and wondered if this was a big mistake. Yeah, he wanted to talk, but he figured that if he was going to try and hook up with a girl, he might as well have that girl be Amy, he had to admit she was a great girl.

Amy walked back over towards Nathan, "Let's go."

The two turned and headed out the door.

Nathan unlocked the door to his room and was relieved to find that his roommate wasn't there. Nathan reached into his fridge and grabbed two beers, he tossed one to Amy who had taken a seat on the bed. He walked over and sat down next to her.

"So, are you going to tell me what's bothering you?"

"Stuff with Haley. She was starting to freak out about this whole thing, me being so far away and all, and she said that she wanted to have an 'open relationship,'" Nathan emphasized those words by forming quotes with his fingers. "I agreed to it because I want her to be happy and all, but I don't know how I feel about it. I guess I don't see how it solves anything. I mean, she worries about me hooking up with other girls so to fix that she tells me that I can?"

"Maybe she just worries that you'll find someone new and leave her, this way maybe she feels like that won't happen."

Nathan thought about that for a moment. It did make sense, and it did seem like the Haley thought process.

"Yeah, I don't know. I guess I just wish she would realize that I don't want anyone besides her. That would make all this so much easier."

"Who said love was easy? Maybe having to work for it and sacrifice will make it that much stronger in the end." Amy moved over towards Nathan, "Plus, who said that having a little freedom was bad?"

Nathan knew just by her body language that Amy was hoping to be the first girl he exercised his new found freedom with. She had moved so that she was sitting right beside him, and she'd placed her hand on his leg.

Amy patted his thigh gently, "Don't worry, it'll all work out in the end. Until then though, why not just enjoy life?"

Nathan nodded and leaned in towards Amy, she began to reciprocate and right as their lips were about to touch, Nathan backed away and jumped off the bed.

"I'm sorry Amy, maybe Haley thinks this is what I want, but it isn't. Really, I'm sorry, you're great but I just can't do this. With all honesty, Haley's the only girl I want to be with."

Nathan looked down towards the floor, too embarrassed to look Amy in her eyes.

Amy shrugged and hopped of the bed, "No big deal, but I'm going to head back to the party, I think you need some time alone."

Amy walked towards the door and opened it, she started to walk out but then turned back towards Nathan, "Just remember, when you're ready I'm here."

After the door closed behind her, Nathan collapsed onto his bed and sighed. What had Haley done to him? There was no doubt about it, Nathan Scott was so in love he couldn't even think straight.


	31. In Your Arms

Chapter 31- In Your Arms

Haley was just lying around, watching some television when she heard a knock on the front door. She waited for a few minutes, hoping to hear her mother or father go to answer it. Realizing that she was probably the only one home, Haley started to get up and head downstairs. Before she was even off the bed she heard the door open and heard the distinct sound of high heels on the hardwood stairs. She knew what that sound meant, Brooke.

Brooke appeared in the doorway of Haley's bedroom, took one look at Haley and shook her head.

"Seriously Haley, since Nathan left your fashion sense has like left the building. Do you ever wear anything besides sweats anymore?"

Brooke walked over and sat next to Haley on the bed.

"Ha ha," Haley's voice dripped with sarcasm, "It's not my fault I like sweats, they're so comfortable. What does it matter anyways, it's not like I'm trying to impress anyone."

"But you can, remember? Nathan isn't the only one who can go around kissing other people, you can too. So come on, get up, and let's go kiss some boys."

Haley laughed, "Remember that thing you have, called a boyfriend, named Lucas? You can't go around kissing any boys besides him."

Brooke rolled her eyes dramatically at Haley. "Obviously. It doesn't mean I can't go and help you pick out boys to kiss."

"True, but what if I don't want to kiss other boys?"

"What kind of open relationship is that then? If Nathan can do it so can you."

Haley thought for a second. When she had opened things up she hadn't really thought about what she could do now. The thought really didn't appeal to her though, she couldn't imagine being with anyone besides Nathan, she didn't want to be with anyone besides Nathan.

"I guess I just don't want to." Haley sighed, "I just can't wait to see him Brooke, and I've never been more excited for anything in my life."

"I forgot, he'll be home for Thanksgiving Break, how's he getting home? I thought he didn't take his car with him."

"He didn't, he's flying home. He comes in tomorrow morning actually."

Brooke smiled, she was excited for her friend. Haley had been so down lately, she knew that seeing Nathan was just what she needed.

"Are you going to go and pick him up?"

"I can't, both my parents work so I can't use either of their cars. I'm sure he'll come over here as soon as he can though."

Haley had begged and begged but her parents had said there was nothing they could do, they both needed their cars.

"Okay, tell me I'm fabulous and the best best friend a girl could ask for."

Haley gave Brooke a puzzled look, "You're fabulous and the best best friend a girl could ask for."

"You can borrow my car, I don't need it until the afternoon."

Haley squealed in delight and lunged towards Brooke, hugging her fiercely.

"You definitely are the best best friend a girl could ask for. Thanks so much Brooke. Oh, I need to call Nathan."

Brooke stood up off the bed, "Well, it looks like my good deed is done here. I'm off to spread joy elsewhere, I was thinking Lucas might want a little joy, if you know that I mean. Call me later."

With that Brooke was off and Haley was frantically dialing the phone, she couldn't wait to tell Nathan the news.

ooooOoooo

Haley couldn't believe how nervous she was as she walked through the airport. Seeing the metal detectors just up ahead she glanced down at her watch and realized she had a few minutes before Nathan's plane would land, so she ducked into a nearby bathroom.

Haley straightened her clothes, choosing an outfit this morning had seemed near impossible. Brooke was right, Haley had been wearing lots of sweats while Nathan had been gone, and today sweats just wouldn't do.

Haley had finally caved and taken Brooke up on the offer to borrow something of hers. Searching through her purse, Haley found her brush and pulled it out. As she ran it through her long hair she hoped Nathan would like the highlights she had added.

Anxiously glancing at her watch, her nervousness started to grow even more. She hadn't seen Nathan in three months, and now she was going to see him in three minutes. All she wanted was to be in his arms, she couldn't wait for the feeling of safety those arms afforded her.

Nathan stepped off the plane and walked through the tunnel leading to the airport. His pace quickened once the metal detectors came into view. Nathan knew that Haley was standing right there, on the other side.

As much as Nathan loved school, he hated that it meant he had to be so far away from Haley. Things had been going well for them the past couple of months. Since Haley had opened up their relationship she had relaxed a lot. They had even started talking on the phone more often, usually every other day, and their conversations went for hours sometimes.

Nathan had felt bad when he first got to school because he had so little time to talk to Haley. He knew that no matter how many times she said it was okay, it still bothered her. Nathan had been relieved once he settled into a routine and became better able to set aside time to talk to Haley. He knew that that eased her mind a lot.

After what seemed like miles of walking, Nathan finally approached the metal detectors. As he walked through he scanned the crowd. Finally, he spotted her, walking towards him, the sight of her took his breath away. She looked up, and locked eyes with him.

Haley broke out into a smile and started towards Nathan. He looked different to her, older somehow. He was wearing his hair a little messier than usual, but she thought it made him look adorable.

Once Haley made it to Nathan she threw her arms around his neck, and he wrapped his arms tightly around her. For that one moment it seemed to Nathan and Haley that time stopped, that everything else going on around them paused. It seemed that the only thing that mattered was the two of them holding each other for the first time in months.

Nathan pulled away just enough to lower his head and capture Haley's lips. He had forgotten how soft they felt. Realizing that they couldn't stand in the airport kissing all day, Nathan slowly released his hold on Haley.

"Hey." Nathan said as he looked into her eyes.

"Hey yourself, how was your trip?"

"Long, it seemed like it was going to be forever until I got to see you."

"I know that feeling. Last night felt like the longest night of my life, I couldn't wait to just get up and come here and get you."

Nathan led them over to the baggage claim. After grabbing his luggage he took Haley's hand and they headed outside. Nathan took a deep breath of the North Carolina air he had missed so much.

"I've missed this weather. The winter in New York is terrible. I have never seen so much snow in my life. It's so nice to walk outside and not have to feel that bitter cold."

"It's been cold here too, it's been in the forties most days."

Nathan laughed out loud, "Well it's been about negative forty up in New York!"

"Oh poor baby, do you get cold?" Haley teased lovingly, "It's not that cold up there."

"Okay, so maybe negative forty is exaggerating a little bit, but it does get cold, much colder than here."

Haley smiled at Nathan. "So what do you want to do today?"

"Well, I want to stop at my dad's and unload all this stuff, and I promised my mom I would go out to dinner with her, and she also invited you to come. But besides that, whatever you want to do is fine with me."

"Good, let's drop your stuff off and go from there. Oh yeah, can we grab your car from your dad's? I have to get Brooke's car back to her before this afternoon."

"Yeah, that's no big deal. He probably washed it and gassed it up for me."

Haley opened the trunk and Nathan put his bags inside. Haley started towards the driver's side of the car when Nathan grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him.

"I don't think I've told you how good it is to see you. I've really missed you Hales. I've missed you like I didn't know it was possible to miss another person."

Nathan leaned down and kissed Haley softly on the lips.

"I've missed you too Nathan, so much."

Haley smiled at Nathan and it melted his heart. He pulled her into him and wrapped her in another hug. Haley let herself melt into him and enjoy the feeling of him. Haley relished in the fact that no matter what was to come, she could always look back on this moment and cherish it, because everything was perfect.


	32. Nobody Else

**Author's note: **Just wanted to thank my Beta Amanda…she's been a huge help these last couple chapters!

Chapter 32- Nobody Else

"We have to talk Hales."

Nathan propped himself up on his elbow. He and Haley had been lying in his bed watching movies for the last few hours, and despite the fact neither wanted to admit it, there was some tension in the air.

Haley grabbed the remote and stopped the movie. As she sat herself up, so she was sitting Indian style facing Nathan, she nodded. She had known this was coming, she had just hoped it could wait.

"Okay, well…I didn't push this issue enough back when it happened. Partly because you already seemed upset and I didn't want to make things worse, but, now I need to know. What's really the reason for this whole open relationship thing?"

Haley gazed down at her lap, wondering if she should just tell him the truth and get it over with. She realized that the truth was probably the only way to go.

"It's just that I was starting to worry. I didn't know what you were doing while you were there, but I did know that you were surrounded by all those pretty college girls, and that kind of freaked me out. Then, I heard those girls I told you about talking in the bathroom, saying that you were going to cheat on me and find someone else and all that. That scared me so much Nathan, it made me worry that you would find someone you wanted to be with more than me. So…I figured that if you could hook up with whoever you wanted, I might have a better chance of hanging onto you."

"I guess I still don't see your line of reasoning Hales."

"Okay, short and sweet, I figured that if you could do whatever you want with whoever you want and still be with me, then you'd stay with me. I felt like if you couldn't hook up with these other girls because of me, then you would break up with me so you could hook up with them. Make sense now?"

Nathan slowly nodded, trying to digest it all. He couldn't believe that he had made Haley feel as though she had to open up their relationship in order to keep him.

Nathan wrapped his arms behind Haley's back and pulled her towards him, so she was practically sitting in his lap. He placed his hands on her legs and looked her deeply in the eyes, "You're not realizing something very important to this whole picture Hales."

"What?"

"I don't want to hook up with other girls. I haven't wanted to at all, not even once. If you want to know the truth, I tried, right after you opened things up, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it Haley, I couldn't even kiss another girl. It just felt so wrong to me."

Haley's eyes widened as she listened to Nathan's words. She had often wondered if he had hooked up with anyone else, but she had been afraid to ask. Hearing that he hadn't, that he couldn't because he only wanted to be with her, well, it was the best news Haley had heard in quite a while.

"Really?"

"Really. Look at me when I say this Hales," Nathan paused until Haley locked eyes with him, "I wish I could promise you that we'll be together forever, but that's impossible for me to do, I have no way of knowing what the future holds for us. But what I can promise you is that right now, all I want to be doing is loving you, you and only you. Do you understand me when I say that?"

Haley nodded, "I do Nathan."

"I wish I could say that I won't meet anyone else I want to be with, but you know I can't say that, just like you couldn't say that about me. Neither of us knows who we might meet. I think all we can do is promise each other that we'll be open about it. If I find someone I want to be with you have to know I'll tell you that, I'll be up front about it. I won't just up and cheat on you, I care about you way too much to do that. I ask the same from you, if there's someone else you want to be with, just tell me. Okay?"

"I can't imagine that ever being the case, but if it is, I promise I'll tell you." Haley gazed down at her lap again. Slowly she lifted her head and looked at Nathan, "So does this mean this whole open relationship thing is over? We can go back to it just being you and me?"

"Absolutely. I don't think it was ever really open anyways, unless you're hiding something from me, because I only entertained the thought of it for all of 10 minutes before I realized that I just couldn't be with someone else."

"Nope, I'm not hiding anything. I didn't do anything either. The only real reason I opened things up was for you, I never even really considered it for myself."

Nathan wrapped his arms around Haley and pulled her into his chest, "I love you Hales, I'm glad we cleared that up."

"I'm glad too Nathan, really glad."

ooooOoooo

Haley couldn't believe it, when she was running late somewhere she hit every red light, but now, when she was driving towards the airport and was definitely not in a hurry to get there, she hit every green light.

Haley looked over towards Nathan and felt as though it was August again. She dreaded these next few days, knowing how empty she would feel. But, she knew that this was going to be her life for the next four years, at least. She'd have a couple of days, or weeks, even months over the summer, with Nathan and then she'd have to say good bye. He'd have to head back to school. Thankfully this time he'd be back in less than a month for Christmas break.

Nathan got out of the car once Haley pulled into a parking spot and headed towards the trunk to get out his luggage. As he stood there, looking between the airport and Haley he wondered how he had gathered up enough strength to walk away from her before. It was killing him to know that he was going to have to do it again.

Nathan reached out for Haley's hand and held it tightly as they made their way to the metal detector.

"Well, just think, I'll be standing here again in less than a month waiting to pick you up." Haley smiled, even though tears had already begun to stream down her face.

"Don't cry Hales, I'll see you again soon."

"That doesn't make this any easier. It doesn't make me feel any better as I watch you walk away from me."

"I know this sucks, I really do, but it's the way it is. We'll get used to it, after awhile me leaving will be like no big deal."

"Yeah…right. I think that you leaving will always hurt, I don't care how used to it I get." Haley looked up towards Nathan and saw that he too was hurting. She knew she wasn't making it any easier for him. "I'll be okay though. It's just that saying good bye is the hard part."

"It is hard."

Nathan leaned down and captured Haley's lips in his. He kissed her with softly at first, but then she reached her hands up behind his neck and pulled him into her, with that his kiss became harder, passion building between them.

Haley was the first to pull away, "You'd better go catch your plane, as much as I'd like you to miss it, I know that wouldn't make you stay for any longer than a few more hours."

Nathan looked down at Haley, his eyes were asking her if she was going to be okay. It had always amazed Haley how she and Nathan could hold conversations by just looking at one another, and today was no exception.

"Really, I'll be okay. Go, get your plane, call me tonight when you get there."

Nathan nodded and started towards the metal detectors. After successfully passing through he turned and looked at Haley, she nodded, assuring him that she'd be okay. Nathan gave a little wave and began to walk away.

Haley stood there watching him walk away, until he was out of her sight completely. She turned and slowly made her way through the airport to the parking garage. Somehow, she managed to hold back her tears, but once she was in the quiet of the car she could feel the flood gates giving way.

As Haley sat there crying she thought she heard her cell phone making a noise. She pulled it from her purse and saw she had a text message, from Nathan.

_Always remember Hales, forever together but never apart, maybe in distance but never in heart. No matter where I go, my heart is always where you are._


	33. Stolen Glances

Chapter 33- Stolen Glances

Christmas and New Year's came and went, as did Nathan, and before Haley knew it she was alone once again. Haley had decided to make a New Year's resolution this year that she would actually stick to, she had resolved to enjoy the rest of her senior year despite the fact that Nathan wasn't there with her.

Peyton and Brooke had been overjoyed at this resolution. Brooke took it as a sign that the threesome should hit up all the best parties, and while Haley had been reluctant at first, it was just what they started to do.

Haley had to admit it, she was feeling better. Keeping busy and being social really helped keep her mind off of how much she missed Nathan. She even managed to get to a point where she wasn't always home when he called. Even though it upset Nathan when Haley forgot that he would be calling, he was glad that she was noticeably happier with things.

While Haley walked into school with Peyton and Brooke the first day back from Christmas Break, Haley realized she was really looking forward to this last half of senior year. Haley had bulked up on classes the past few years, and that had allowed her to have a really easy second semester. She had filled some spots in her schedule with electives, and other spots she had just left open, allowing herself to have a half day every other day.

After stopping at her locker, Haley headed towards her first class, performing arts. She was really excited about this class. She had heard that it was a lot of fun. There were three parts to the class; singing, acting and dancing. Haley obviously loved the dance part, but she had always had a little interest in the singing and acting parts as well, she just never had the chance to pursue it. She figured this was the perfect chance, seeing as how she would earn some school credit as well.

Haley walked into the room and looked around. There were very few familiar faces in the room. The theatre group never really was Haley's crowd. She made her way over to the circle of chairs in the center of the room and picked a seat that was empty on both sides.

The bell rang and Haley settled into her seat, a little relieved that no one had sat next to her. As the teacher started taking attendance, a tall, dark haired boy slipped into class and sat down right next to Haley. Haley looked him over for a second, she recognized him a little. She knew his name was Jesse, and that he was a bit of a class clown, but that was really all.

Jesse turned towards Haley, catching her looking at him, and he smiled and extended his hand to her, "Jesse Aiello."

Haley shook his hand, "Haley James."

"I know, I've seen you around. You're Nathan Scott's girlfriend right?"

"Yep, that's me." Haley blushed a little bit as she talked to Jesse and she was unsure as to why.

Haley kept glancing over towards Jesse throughout class, she wasn't sure why, but she was very curious about this boy.

When class was over Haley scooped up her books and started towards the door, at the last minute she turned towards Jesse, "It was nice to meet you Jesse Aiello."

"It was nice to meet you too Haley James."

Haley left the room and headed towards Brooke's locker, knowing that if Haley wanted to scoop on someone, Brooke was the best way to go.

"Hey Brooke." Haley called out as she walked up behind Brooke, who was checking her make up in the mirror in her locker.

"Tutorgirl, how's it going?"

"Fine, my first class was good, looks like I'll like it. I met this kid though, I was wondering if you knew anything about him."

"Who?"

"Jesse Aiello."

Brooke tapped her chin as she thought for a minute, then she started nodding, "Tall, skinny, dark hair?"

"Yep, that's him."

"Yeah, I know who he is. He's a junior, not one of the smartest kids to walk the halls of Tree Hill High. He's supposedly really funny, a real clown. I don't think his family has a lot of money, he lives over on the not so nice side of town, if you know what I mean." Brooke raised her eyebrow as she finished her last statement.

"Anything else?"

"Not really, I know that he's usually with these two guys, Eric and Steve, their both juniors too. Eric was quite the gossip last year. His scandalously older girlfriend had his baby. It was quite the story. Besides that, I don't really know anything else. Why so curious?"

"Oh, no reason, just wondering about him, he seemed nice is all." The bell rang in the background, "Well, I have to get to class. I'll see you at lunch. Bye Brooke."

"Yep, bye Haley."

Brooke watched as her friend walked away. Whether or not Haley wanted to admit it, something was going on, Brooke was sure of it.

ooooOoooo

A few weeks later Haley was standing at her locker trying to decide what books she needed to take home with her when she heard a familiar voice from behind her.

"Well, well, well, Miss James, we meet again."

Haley peered up from her locker and saw Jesse standing besides her. It was a week into the semester and Haley had been talking to Jesse regularly in class, but she never saw him outside of it.

"Hey Jesse, what brings you over this way?"

"One of my buddies Eric just got his locker moved over here, some kid in a wheelchair needed his. I guess it was closer to his classes or whatever."

"Oh." Haley nodded as she pretended to be searching for something in her locker.

"So Haley James, what class do you have now?"

"Actually, I have lunch and then I'm done for the day, I worked it out so I have some afternoons off."

"Isn't this a coincidence? I have lunch now too. Care to join me? I was going to run out and grab something."

Haley thought for a minute. Jesse was just a new friend right? Someone she had just met and wanted to get to know better. There wasn't any problem in that. Nathan would understand, after all, it was only lunch.

"Sure, sounds good." Haley said as she slammed her locker shut. "I'll drive."

"Good idea, seeing as how I don't have a car or a driver's license."

"But I thought you said you were going to run out and grab some lunch?"

"I meant literally run and get something, at the pizza place down the street."

"Oh." Haley laughed in spite of herself.

The two headed out towards the parking lot and Haley wove her way through the sea of cars until she spotted her own. With her school schedule this semester she had finally been able to convince her parents that she needed a car. When she had half days, Brooke couldn't drive her home. Haley's parents were the kind of parents who wouldn't just buy any car, it had to be economical and safe, and so they had finally agreed on a slightly used Honda civic.

Haley pressed a button on her key ring, unlocking the doors.

"Nice ride." Jesse said as he lowered himself into the seat.

"Thanks, my parents just got it for me."

"That was nice of them. My parents couldn't afford to buy me a car."

So Brooke had been right, Haley thought. His family didn't have a lot of money. Not that Haley really cared that much, it wasn't like her family had a lot of money. Her family was comfortable enough, after all, it hadn't really seemed like that much of a big deal to them that they were dropping thousands on a car for Haley.

"I had to beg and beg for this one. Finally they caved. I can be very charming when I want to."

Haley raised her eyebrow suggestively at Jesse as she said it. She had to stop herself for a second. What was she doing? She was obviously flirting with this boy. Nathan, remember Nathan, she said to herself over and over in her head.

They headed towards town to grab some lunch, finally settling on one of the many café's on Main Street. As they ate they talked lightly, learning the basics about one another. Haley felt strangely at ease, she wasn't usually with someone she didn't know very well. It was odd though, she felt really comfortable with Jesse.

After eating, Haley drove back towards the school to drop Jesse off. They had just been riding in silence, listening to a CD Haley had mentioned to Jesse before, when he broke the silence.

"So, Nathan Scott's girlfriend huh?"

"Yep, for over a year now."

"What's that like?"

Haley wasn't sure what he meant. People would ask what Nathan was like, or if they were happy, but no one ever asked her what it was like actually dating him.

"What do you mean?"

"Well isn't he up in New York for school?"

Once again, the Tree Hill rumor mill at work. Everyone knew everything all the time.

"Yeah he is."

"And what's that like, being so far away from him?"

"It's okay I guess. It was really hard at first, but I'm adjusting. Saying good bye is the hardest part, but once he's gone I just settle back into things."

"Are you ever lonely?"

Haley was surprised, he was the first person to ask her that question, but it really seemed as though it was obvious.

"Sometimes, yeah. My two best friends are great though, always trying to keep me busy."

"It's not the same though is it? It's not the same kind of closeness that you and him have."

Haley looked thoughtful for a minute. How was it that this kid was so in her head, how did he know what she was feeling when she didn't even realize she was feeling it?

"No, it's not the same. It's good though, I'm fine. I handle it just fine."

Haley hoped he would take that as the cue that she wasn't comfortable talking about this anymore. Thankfully, she pulled up in front of the school.

"Well Haley, I had a good time. Thanks for the company."

"I had a good time too. I'm glad we did this."

Jesse turned to face her, "We'll have to do it again soon." Jesse squinted and moved a little closer to Haley, "It looks like you have some crumbs on right here."

With that Jesse reached out and brushed the crumbs away. Haley flinched and backed away when she felt his touch, as though he had hurt her or something. He looked at her oddly but then got out of the car and headed towards the school.

Haley just sat there, a little embarrassed. Jesse probably thought he had hurt her or something, when in fact it had been nothing of the sort. In fact, when Jesse touched her, the last thing she felt was pain, she couldn't believe it, but it was as though she had felt a spark. It was as though there had been electricity between them, and that feeling, well it was definitely not pain, and it was definitely not expected.


	34. When One Breaks

Chapter 34- When One Breaks

The weeks passed more quickly than Haley could believe, and before she knew it Nathan's spring break was coming up. Nathan had promised, back when he'd been home during Christmas, that he'd return to Tree Hill and spend his break with Haley.

Haley had been spending more and more of her free time with Jesse the past few weeks. It was apparent to Haley that Jesse had feelings for her, and sometimes Haley felt as though she might have feelings for him. However, Haley had told Jesse that nothing could ever happen between them, explaining that she cared for Nathan too much to ever hurt him. Jesse had been understanding and knew that what Haley needed most was a friend, so he was there to provide it.

One night Haley was sitting at home finishing up her homework when her phone rang. She picked it up and glanced at the caller ID, when she saw Nathan's name pop up she quickly answered the call.

"Hi Nathan."

"Hey Hales, how are you?"

"I'm good, just doing some homework. I wasn't expecting to hear from you, is everything okay?"

Nathan had been doing great with calling Haley regularly. The phone calls were usually scheduled to ensure that each would have time to devote to the call. This phone call was completely unscheduled, and that worried Haley a little bit.

"Yeah, everything's okay, for the most part. I do have a little bit of bad news though."

"Oh no, what?"

"My mom called me earlier today asking me to come and visit her in Florida over my spring break. I know that you were looking forward to me being in Tree Hill, and I was too, but I couldn't say no Haley, she's my mom. She had already bought me a plane ticket and everything."

Haley's heart sank. While Nathan was home on Christmas break Nathan's mother, Deb, had moved to Florida with her new husband. Nathan hadn't been too distraught over this seeing as he was away at school and rarely saw his mother as it was. Haley, however, had been a little upset. She knew that this move would require Nathan to spend time on his breaks and holidays visiting his mother in Florida. Haley knew that it was selfish of her, but she didn't want to have any more time apart from Nathan than was really necessary.

"I understand, she's your mom, she's family. It's okay. I'll just have to wait until May to see you."

That last statement made Nathan feel guilty, he knew that Haley realized that May was still months away but she was still trying to make Nathan feel as though this time apart would be no big deal. Nathan loved her for it, but wanted her to be honest about her feelings.

"You aren't upset?"

"Nope." Haley spoke with a strained voice, "I understand, it's okay. I really should go Nathan. I was right in the middle of a paper. I'll talk to you again soon."

Haley hung up the phone before Nathan could even utter a good bye. Tears began to well in her eyes. Haley felt as though it was starting already, she felt as though Nathan was beginning to slip away from her. It starts with one visit here, and another there, and before she knew it Nathan would barely ever return to Tree Hill.

Haley sat on her bed crying for a few minutes, but then realized that this wasn't what she wanted. She didn't want to spend her night being upset, she'd already wasted too many nights sitting around crying over Nathan, so Haley reached over and dialed a number that was becoming quite familiar.

"Hello hello."

"Hey Jesse, it's Haley."

"Haley, hey, what's up? You sound upset."

Leave it to Jesse to be able to tell how Haley felt from just a few words. From the minute they met he had had this innate ability to know just what Haley was thinking and feeling without her even needing to say a word. It was the first time Haley had connected so easily with someone like that. Sure, Nathan could read her well, but that had come from months and months of being together, with Jesse it was there from the beginning.

"I'm just upset about some stuff, but I don't want to sit here alone crying about it. So I was wondering if you wanted to meet up, we could go and talk somewhere."

"Sure, just give me a few minutes to finish up what I'm doing. Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know yet, how about I just pick you up in half an hour?"

"Okay then, I'll see you in a few."

Haley looked down at the homework that had been sitting in front of her and thought that she should really finish off her math assignment before she left. She took a deep breath and tried to focus, but it was all a jumble to her. Instead, she hopped off her bed and headed down to her car. She had a little bit of time before she had to go and get Jesse so she figured she'd just drive around until then, try to clear her head.

After picking up Jesse, the two friends decided to head down to the river front where they knew they'd be able to talk in peace. Spring was upon them, but the nights were still chilling in Tree Hill, the river front was usually empty after 6 o'clock or so, when everyone retreated to their homes to escape the cool night air.

Once they sat down on a bench overlooking the water, Jesse just put an arm around Haley but didn't ask her what was going on. He knew that she would fill him in when she was ready, until then, he was perfectly happy to sit there in silence.

The minutes passed and Jesse soon realized that Haley was shivering.

"I'm going to run across the street and grab us some hot chocolate, will you be okay here for a few minutes?"

Haley looked up at Jesse and nodded.

Jesse returned and handed Haley one of the steaming cups. She took a slow sip, allowing the sweet liquid to warm her insides. Haley then took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Nathan called tonight, to tell me that he wasn't going to come home for his spring break anymore. Instead he's going to go and visit his mother in Florida. I know that I shouldn't be angry, it's his mother after all, but I am and I can't help it. I want him to come here and be with me. Is that terribly selfish?"

"I don't think so. I think it's just realistic. Of course you want him to come home and be with you, you haven't seen him in months. And now, if he doesn't come here, you won't see him for another couple of months. That's what, five months apart? That's a long time. I think you're justified in being upset."

"It's just like, this brought me to a point where I have to ask myself, is this worth it? Is all the waiting worth it? Five months apart, and for what? All we'll get is the summer together, and that's just about three months. It's like we spend so much time apart and never get to make up for it in the time we do spend together. It's just hard, so much harder than I thought."

As Haley spoke, tears began to stream down her cheeks. She'd been feeling uneasy about things for a while now, but it was just a slight feeling of unease. This newest event had increased that feeling ten fold, and now it was just more than Haley could bear.

"I know it must be hard, but you need to look past these hard times and focus on the times you are together. You need to keep that in mind so you know what it is you're fighting for."

Haley looked up at Jesse and smiled. "It's funny, you have these feelings for me, and I know it, and sometimes I share in those feelings, but here I am crying to you about Nathan. I really am selfish, making you listen to what is probably the last thing you want to hear me talk about."

"I'll gladly listen to whatever you want to throw my way. And I promise that I will always try and give you completely unbiased advice, even though sometimes that's hard to do."

"So what if you decided not to be unbiased? What would your advice be for me right now?"

Jesse looked thoughtful for a minute. He was contemplating whether or not he should really say what he was thinking. Realizing that this might be his only chance, he figured he might as well.

"I'd tell you to break up with him. I'd tell you to find someone who can really be there for you, and not just over the phone. I'd obviously prefer that that person was me, but I guess I could settle on someone who is in this zip code, at least then I would know who my opponent really was."

"Opponent?"

"Sure, the other guy who is vying for your heart." Jesse took a deep breath, "You know how I feel Haley, its no secret. I think that you're absolutely amazing. I hate to see you hurting like this, especially because there isn't anything I can do about it."

"You're doing enough Jesse, really you are. Just being here, listening, that's really all you can do."

"It's not all I want to do though. I want to do more."

Haley nodded in agreement, "I know, sometimes I wish that you could..."

Haley's voice trailed off on that last word. Jesse had begun to lean in towards her, and she found herself reciprocating. Before she knew it, their lips were mere millimeters apart. Haley felt torn, wanting to lean in and discover what feelings could lay behind that kiss but at the same time knowing that it would be so wrong.

"I'm sorry, I just can't." Haley said as she jumped off the bench.

"No, Haley, don't apologize. It's my fault. I shouldn't have even initiated it like that. I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. Please, sit back down, I promise I'll keep my lips to myself."

Haley ran her hand through her hair, trying to gather her thoughts. She couldn't believe that he had tried to kiss her, but even more than that, she couldn't believe that she had almost kissed him.

"No, I really should get going. Let's go, I'll take you home."

"Haley…"

"No really, it's okay. I just need to get home."

It was obvious to Jesse that now wasn't the time to try and apologize, so he nodded in concession and got up, following Haley towards her car.

The car ride to Jesse's house was cloaked in an odd silence. Neither really knew what to say. When they pulled up in front of Jesse's house they turned to each other, each one wanting to speak, and Haley spoke first.

"I'm really not mad at you. I think I'm just more confused, and mad at myself a little bit. I almost cheated on Nathan, and not because of anything you did, but because I wanted to kiss you. I just have a lot to work through."

Jesse nodded, "I understand. Take all the time you need. I know that you say it isn't my fault, but I'm still sorry. I really am. I was out of…"

Haley raised a finger to Jesse's lips, "Shhhh. It's done, there's nothing left to talk about. I'm really not angry."

Jesse lightly kissed Haley's fingertip and then opened his door and got out of the car without another word.

Haley watched him walk into his house. Once the door closed behind him she began to furiously punch at the steering wheel. She punched for all of the hurt that her relationship with Nathan had managed to bestow upon her. She punched for the frustration that she had momentarily wavered in her devotion to him, but most of all she punched because of disappointment that the kiss had not happened.


	35. Forever's A Really Long Time

**Author's note: **Just remember, it's about the journey. There's quite a ways to go to the end of this story and I will promise that this story will not end on a bad note. So, with that said, take the journey with me…

Chapter 35- Forever's A Really Long Time

Before Haley knew it, senior ball was upon her. Brooke was a whirlwind of excitement. She was planning everything for the night and had been dragging Haley and Peyton around with her to countless stores searching for the "perfect dress."

Haley wished that she could get on board with Brooke's excitement, but no matter how she tried she just couldn't. Nathan would be coming home for the summer in a few days, just in time for the senior ball, but Haley wasn't so sure that she wanted to go to the ball with him. In fact, Haley wasn't even sure if she wanted to still be dating him.

Haley knew that the majority of the hardship in their relationship was her fault. Once she had realized that she did in fact have feelings for Jesse she had started to pull away from Nathan. She had not cheated on Nathan, she just couldn't do that to him, but she had come close quite a few times. It had finally gotten to the point where Haley had to stop spending time with Jesse altogether, it just got to be too hard for her.

Haley knew that it was time to break things off with Nathan, but after all they had been through she just couldn't do it over the phone. That seemed to cold and impersonal, and she owed Nathan much more than that. Haley kept telling herself that all she had to do was hold on until Nathan came home and then they could talk. She didn't think that Nathan would be all that surprised, there wasn't any way that he could think that everything was fine.

In truth, Haley was right, Nathan was not happy at all with the way things had been going. He had felt Haley pulling away and had tried to fight against it at first, but then found himself giving in. If Haley was pulling away because she was unhappy, then Nathan knew that he had to let her have her space. The last thing Nathan wanted was for Haley to be unhappy, but trying to keep Haley happy was doing nothing but making Nathan unhappy.

Nathan missed Haley. He missed sharing the events of his life with her. He missed her calling him because she was excited about this thing or that thing, but most of all, he just missed his girlfriend. As much as he hated to admit it, Nathan had begun to pull away himself, in order to prevent himself from getting hurt.

Nathan was apprehensive about returning home to Tree Hill in a few days. He knew that once he was back he and Haley would have to talk about how things were going, and he was pretty sure that that was one talk that wasn't going to go well.

ooooOoooo

"Seriously, Tutorgirl, pull yourself out of this funk. What is going on with you? Nathan will be home tonight and you don't seem excited at all."

Brooke was getting sick of Haley's broody routine, it had been going on for weeks and she wasn't going to take it anymore.

"How can I be excited when I know that I have to break up with him?"

"Wait… what? You're going to break up with Nathan? Why? I mean yeah, I know that things haven't been that great for the two of you lately, but breaking up, do you really think that that is the solution? I'm sure that you can work through whatever is going on. You're Nathan and Haley. You can get through anything together."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Brooke, but I don't think that we can get through this. I'm just not happy with him anymore. All that stuff that happened with Jesse made me realize that maybe Nathan isn't meant to be my one and only. I don't know, it just doesn't feel right anymore. He has only been gone for one year of school and look how bad things got, imagine how bad they would be after four years. I can't even imagine. This is the right thing to do."

Brooke could tell that this was upsetting Haley so she pulled her into a hug.

"If this is the right thing to do why is it making you so miserable?"

"I'm just scared. Thinking about what I have to do is much easier than actually doing it."

"Aw, Haley, it'll be okay. I have a feeling that when you finally see Nathan everything will become clear to you. If you're meant to break up with him, you'll know. Now come on, let's get to lunch, some food will do that skinny ass of yours some good."

Brooke put her arm around Haley and the two girls headed down the hallway. Brooke began to fill Haley in on the most recent gossip, hoping to keep Haley's mind off of the drama with Nathan, but it was hopeless. Haley could think of nothing else.

ooooOoooo

Haley headed for the parking lot, relieved that the day was finally over. Now she could go home and hide out in her bedroom. She needed the time to prepare herself for seeing Nathan.

Haley pushed open the door leading to the outside and stopped dead in her tracks. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. There was Nathan leaning on his car with a dozen roses in his hand. Nathan was standing right in front of her.

Haley made her way over to him and when she was right in front of him he pulled her into a hug. Haley tried to relax and let her defenses down so she could melt into his arms like she had always done before, but she just couldn't. Something just didn't feel right.

"Surprised?"

"Definitely. You were without a doubt the last thing I expected to see when I walked out of those doors. When did you get in?"

"A couple of hours ago. After I finished my finals yesterday I started packing and just didn't stop, I managed to hit the road around 2 o'clock in the morning. I just drove and drove, knowing that I could sleep after I got to see you."

"I appreciate that, I really do, but I thought you weren't going to be getting in until tonight and well, I have to meet with some kids about a project for my government class. I was just running out to my car to grab my notebook, I left it there after lunch."

Haley was amazed at how easily the lie rolled off her tongue. She could tell by the look in Nathan's eyes that she had hurt him, once again.

"It's okay, I understand. School comes first. I didn't give you much notice. I guess just call me later. I'll go home and sleep, but I'll see you later?"

"Definitely later."

Haley leaned in and kissed Nathan lightly on the cheek before turning and heading towards her car. Once she was inside she breathed a sigh of relief, she had managed to put off their much needed conversation for a few more hours. Haley sat there in her car for about five minutes before leaving, ensuring that Nathan had left the parking lot and wouldn't see her pull out and catch her in her lie.

ooooOoooo

Later that evening Haley was sitting downstairs waiting for Nathan to arrive. They had agreed to take a walk and talk about everything. Haley was nervous for what was to come, but she kept convincing herself that it was all for the best.

Nathan arrived and again had the dozen roses in his hand. Haley had been in such a hurry earlier that she had left without them. Nathan had tried to convince himself that Haley had good reason for running off on him so quickly that afternoon, but it wasn't working. He was pretty sure that she had lied, that she hadn't had a project to work on.

As he approached her front door he hoped that they could talk it all out tonight. But he knew, deep inside of him, that one conversation wasn't going to be enough to fix whatever it was that had torn them apart.

Haley answered the door and took the roses graciously, she had forgotten to bring them with her earlier and felt terrible about that. She ran to put them into some water and then met back up with Nathan in the entryway.

The two started off on their walk in silence, both of them not knowing what to say, both terrified to start the conversation. Finally, Haley realized that it was now or never.

"We really need to talk Nathan."

"Yeah, we do Hales."

"Things haven't been going to great lately, not that I really need to tell you that. I know that a lot of it was my fault, that it was me who pulled away."

Nathan nodded in agreement, "What happened to cause that?"

"Honestly? I met someone else." Haley looked over at Nathan and realized that he had stopped dead in his tracks. She turned to him and looked him in the eyes, "Now don't jump to conclusions. I didn't cheat on you, it wasn't anything like that. I just met this guy and, I don't know, he made me feel something. I could talk to him, he understood me. I realized I had feelings for him, and when I realized that, I realized that maybe that meant that you and I shouldn't be together anymore."

"No Haley, don't say that. You don't mean that. I love you, so much. I know you love me too, so how can you say that we shouldn't be together?"

Haley felt as though her throat was closing up, and she was trying to fight back tears. She could see that tears were forming in Nathan's eyes, and that caused her to lose all control.

"Because it just isn't right. I can't do it. I can't be so far from you. This year was so hard for me. It's not like it's going to get better, I'm going to Chapel Hill Nathan, I'm staying down here. That's three more years that we'll have to be apart. I'm not strong enough, I'm just not. I'm sorry."

Nathan had stopped fighting it and was crying now, "You are strong enough Hales, you have to be. I need you to be. Because without you, I'm not strong enough. You are my world Hales, you really are. I don't know what I'll do without you."

"You'll be okay Nathan, we both will. I think that we just need to grow up, and I think we need to do it separate from each other. I feel like I've lost myself sometimes, like I gave you too much of myself and now I can't be alone. I need to be alone. I need to know that I can be alone. I want to go away to school alone, I want to start that next step on my own. Don't you get that?"

"Yeah I get it. Go be with him, with whoever this guy is. I just wish you wouldn't lie and say that you want to be alone when you really want to be with him."

Nathan turned to walk away but Haley grabbed his arm and whipped him around so he was facing her once again.

"It's not like that and you know it. He just made me see that everything isn't okay. That's all. And it's not, it hasn't been. I just haven't been happy Nathan, do you understand that?"

"I understand that it's hard, I understand that it was probably harder for you than me. I mean here you are, stuck back home while I'm out living this brand new life. Of course that wouldn't be easy. But this isn't the answer. I mean you and me," He pointed between himself and Haley as he spoke, "We're supposed to be together forever."

Haley shook her head, "No Nathan, forever's a really long time. We're so young, how can we even begin to understand forever? And even if we do understand it, well I'm not ready for it to start. I'm not ready for forever yet. There's still stuff I want to experience for me. I'm only 18, you're only 19. I just think we're too young for forever. I think that forever can wait."

"What are you saying Haley?"

"I'm saying that I don't think that this is the end of us. I think it's more of a break. I think that we need to have some time apart, to grow up and experience life for ourselves. But with all honesty Nathan, I see myself with you in the end. I really do. I just can't have it be the end yet. I feel like I still have a journey to take, we still have a journey to take."

"I don't want to take that journey without you Haley."

Nathan was practically pleading and it was breaking Haley's heart.

"You have to Nathan. I'm sorry but you do. It will make it better for us in the end. It really will. Just please think about it Nathan, think about what I've said."

Nathan nodded, "Fine, I'll think about it."

"Now I'm going to go this way, stop by Brooke's that way you can go and get your car at my house. Just use that time to think about what I said and call me tomorrow. We'll talk again then."

"Fine." Nathan watched as Haley turned to walk away, "Hales?"

"Yeah Nathan?"

"I love you Haley, I need you to know that."

"I know Nathan, and I love you too. But sometimes that just isn't enough."


	36. Walk Away

**Author's note: **Hey guys, thanks to everyone who reads. The reviews have dropped off these last few chapters, I was kind of surprised because I thought people would react to all this Naley drama. Let me know what you guys think, good or bad!

Chapter 36- Walk Away

Haley walked quickly down the street. Somehow she had managed to stop crying, and she was trying with everything she had to keep her emotions in check until she got to Brooke's house.

After walking for what seemed like miles, Haley finally reached the outside door to Brooke's bedroom. Turning the doorknob, she stormed right in. Brooke was sitting on the bed waiting for her. As soon as she saw Haley she pulled her into a hug and Haley let it all go.

Brooke led Haley over to the bed and the two sat there, Brooke hugging Haley as she cried for the better part of an hour. Brooke knew that Haley had to talk about it, but it was clear she wasn't ready yet.

At one point Haley's sobs slowed and she seemed to gain some composure. She pulled back slowly from Brooke and just looked at her.

"It was awful Brooke. I hurt him so bad. He was so upset."

"Okay, start from the beginning and tell me what happened."

Haley nodded and started from the beginning. Brooke listened intently, offering support when she thought Haley needed it.

Finally Haley took a deep breath, "And then that was it, I just walked away after that."

"Wow. It does sound intense. I think you handled it fine though. You were totally honest, that's the important part."

"It just hurt so much Brooke. I didn't expect that. I thought I was ready for it."

"You're never ready to say good bye to your first love." Brooke paused for a moment, "So you're going to talk tomorrow?"

"I hope so. I think Nathan just needs some time to think about what I said, and then we can talk about it. I mean tonight it was just him freaking out and rapid firing questions at me, it almost seemed like he thought he could change my mind. I'm hoping that once he thinks about it he'll realize that he can't and then he can begin to accept it. I don't know, I guess we'll see."

Brooke just nodded sympathetically, she felt as though there wasn't anything else she could do for Haley.

"Okay Brooke, take my mind off of this. Let's talk about something else. How're things with Lucas?"

"You really want to hear about that now?"

"Yeah, hearing about how happy the two of you are will make me feel better, I promise. This is what I need."

"Okay, well, things are great actually. I'm still not sick of him. I mean, we're a little freaked out with school next year, but we haven't really decided what's going to happen with that, neither of us has settled on where we want to go."

"Oh Brooke, you really need to figure that out."

"Hmmm Hales, seems like you're just fine to me, acting like my mom as usual."

The girls looked at one another and laughed. She was right, this was what Haley needed.

Brooke called Peyton over and the three girls had an old fashioned sleep over. After Haley filled Peyton in on everything that had happened, the girls vowed to talk about anything but the break up for the rest of the night.

Haley fell asleep easily for the first time in weeks that night. There was just something about having her two best friends right by her side that always helped her rest easy.

ooooOoooo

Haley was sitting on a bench down by the water waiting for Nathan. He had left her a text message asking her to meet him. Haley had gotten there early in hopes of getting some time to herself to process everything that had been said between the two of them the night before.

"Haley, hi."

Haley turned around and saw Nathan walking towards her.

"Hi Nathan."

Haley scooted over on the bench allowing Nathan room to sit beside her.

"I did a lot of thinking last night Haley."

Haley just waited, knowing that he had to be the one to talk today, seeing as how she'd done most of it last night.

"It took me a lot of thinking before I began to see what you were saying. We are so young, and things have been so serious with us. I do understand that we both have a lot of growing up to do. And I'm sorry, if I said anything mean yesterday I was just hurt and angry you know?"

"I know. I just needed to be honest with you, and the only way I could do that was by telling you everything." Haley turned towards Nathan who still had not attempted to make eye contact. "Nathan look at me."

Nathan tilted his face up towards Haley slowly. Haley did not speak until their eyes met.

"The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you Nathan, but by not hurting you I was miserable. You had told me that when I wasn't happy anymore to tell you, and I did."

"I know. And with all honesty, I wasn't that surprised to hear it, I knew things weren't going well. But, knowing it was coming didn't make it any easier. I just don't know what I'll do without you Haley."

"I feel the same way about you. We'll figure it out though."

Haley turned away from Nathan and looked down towards the ground. Nathan followed suit and they sat beside one another in silence.

"I'm not staying in Tree Hill for the summer," Nathan suddenly announced.

"What?" Haley looked at Nathan, confused.

"I'm going to stay with Tony, from school, in Maryland for the summer. I just can't be here Haley. I can't risk running into you somewhere. If I have to keep seeing you I'll never get over this."

"So you're just going to up and leave? God Nathan, that's not what I want. I don't want you out of my life, you have to know that. I want us to be friends."

"I can't be just friends with you right now Haley, it hurts too much. Every time I see you I want to pull you into my arms and kiss you. I want to make this all better but I can't. Seeing you will just frustrate me. I really think that this is best."

"If it's what you think you have to do then go."

Nathan couldn't believe it, Haley sounded mad. He had known she would be thrilled with the news, but figured that space was the best thing to help them both move past all of this. Nathan was shocked when Haley suddenly jumped off the bench and stood before him.

"If you want to run away then fine, do it. But don't come crawling back when you miss having me in your life. We could have been friends Nathan, the pain would have healed and we could have been friends. But what now? I'll never see you again? You'll be in Maryland all summer and then back at school. So what? I'll see you next May? Or wait, maybe not until you graduate. That sounds like a great plan."

Nathan could feel the anger rising in him as Haley stood there yelling at him. He knew that she was hurt and not really angry, but that didn't decrease his level of frustration towards her.

"You brought this on yourself Haley." Nathan began as he rose of the bench to face her, his voice rising along with his anger, "You called it off, not me. This is just what I need to do to deal."

"Well what about what I need to do to deal?"

"You gave up your right to choose when you broke up with me. Now it's my turn, and this is what I choose."

"Fine, have a nice life." Haley crossed her arms and turned on her heel.

Nathan knew she was about to storm off and he grabbed her by the shoulder, whipping her around.

"No, you don't get to walk away today. You did that last night and all I could do was stand there watching you. So you know what? I get to walk away first today and you can stand and watch, after all, I'm walking away because of what you want, because of what you think is best. So goodbye Haley."

Nathan turned and walked away, before Haley had a chance to object. And in that moment Haley understood what Nathan must have felt the night before when she left him standing there as she walked away, sheer and utter helplessness.


	37. Regret

**Author's note: **Sorry it took me so long to update…I had some stuff going on in my personal life last week and I just didn't have any time to write. I promise at least two updates this week to make up for it. Thanks so much for all the reviews. It inspires me to write…so…here it is…

Chapter 37- Regret

"I cannot even believe that this is our last week in Tree Hill. This summer flew by fast." Brooke proclaimed as she floated around on a lounge in the pool.

Haley nodded in agreement, the months had flown by. Now, the beginning of their freshman year of college was upon them. Brooke would be leaving first. She was heading up to New York City to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology. Brooke had been unsure as to whether or not she wanted to go so far away for school, but she had been easily swayed when Lucas had accepted a full athletic scholarship to Syracuse. They would be less than an hour plane ride apart.

Peyton and Haley were leaving together, heading to Chapel Hill. They had opted against being roommates, but were going to be living in the same residence hall. Haley was going to study political science, in hopes of one day making it to law school, and Peyton would be studying art.

"I just can't believe that we're going to college, I swear it feels like just yesterday we were starting high school." Peyton looked up from her sketch pad as she spoke.

Peyton made eye contact with Brooke who nodded in Haley's direction. Peyton looked over and could see that Haley's mind was somewhere else.

"Tutorgirl, earth to Tutorgirl, are you with us?" Brooke exclaimed from the pool.

"What? Brooke, yeah, I'm with you."

Brooke laughed, "Yeah, right. What's going on in that head of yours? You've been daydreaming all day."

"I've just been thinking about this time last year, with Nathan leaving and all. Despite him leaving, and how hard that was, we were so happy, so in love with each other. And look at us now. He left the state because he didn't want to run the risk of seeing me."

"Come on Haley, what did you expect?"

"Peyton, shhh." Brooke warned.

"No Brooke, let Peyton say what she wants to say."

"It's just that I see where Nathan's coming from. That boy loves you so much and at the first sign of trouble you're just bailing out. And this whole thing with Jesse, the second you realized you were attracted to him you should have gotten yourself out of that situation. You never should have been in the position where you almost kissed. I know you couldn't help how you felt for him, but you could help how you reacted to it."

Haley just sat quietly, thinking about what Peyton was saying. Finally she spoke, "This wasn't the first sign of trouble. Things hadn't felt right for a while. This wasn't all because of Jesse. It's about so much more than that."

Peyton stopped Haley, "I'm not the one you need to explain yourself to. I'm just telling you what I think."

Haley nodded and then stood up, clearly annoyed at Peyton for sharing her opinion. She gathered up her clothes and towel as she stood. "I'm going to get going. I have to work. I'll talk to you guys later."

Brooke glared at Peyton as Haley walked away. "Jeez Pey, did you really have to say that?"

"Yeah, I did. She's been whining about this all summer and I'm sick of it. She broke up with him, he had to leave to deal with it and I can understand that, sometimes space is a good thing."

"I still think you could have maybe said it a little nicer, or not have said anything at all."

"Yeah, well, I couldn't. I'm sick of hearing about it. I thought it was time to tell her what I thought." Peyton reached for her iPod, putting the ear phones in, clearly indicating to Brooke that she wasn't in the mood to further discuss the issue.

ooooOoooo

Later that day Haley was at work, busy waiting on customers, when she felt something. She wasn't sure what it was, but something was telling her to turn around. Doing so, she glanced at the registers behind her, and there he was. A few registers over there was Nathan, she could only see that back of his head, but she knew that it was him.

Taking a deep breath she told herself to focus on the customer in front of her, now certainly wasn't the time to talk to him. She was just shocked that he was back.

Out of the corner of her eye she noticed him walking towards her register, towards the exit. As he got closer she turned, certain that he had seen her. Their eyes met for a brief second, but he quickly tore his gaze away from her and walked out of the store.

This small encounter left Haley breathless. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to chase him out of the store and talk to him, see how his summer had been, if he'd had fun, if he was looking forward to school, if he had missed her. That was really what Haley wanted to know, if he'd missed her. Haley had missed him so much, everyday, her heart had ached for him, she wondered if his had ached for her.

Haley glanced over at the clock, seeing she had three hours left of her shift. She knew that there wasn't anything she could do now.

When Haley left work she pulled out her phone, took a deep breath, and dialed his number. She had thought about it for the last three hours, she had to talk to him.

"Hello."

"Hey Nathan, its Haley."

"Hey, what's up?"

"Well I saw you at the store, I guess I just wanted to call and say hi. How was Maryland?"

"It was fine, thanks."

After Nathan answered neither said a word, they just sat there in an uncomfortable silence.

"I'd like to see you before you head back to school, if that's alright with you."

"I don't know Haley, will that do any good?"

"Nathan, we can't just avoid one another forever."

"I know, I know. Yeah, we can get together before I leave."

"Okay, when do you leave?"

Haley clenched her jaw, this conversation was frustrating her, it was like pulling teeth.

"Tomorrow."

"Well then, I guess that leaves tonight. Do you have any plans?"

"Not besides packing."

"Okay…how about we grab some ice cream later? It will give you a break from packing."

"Fine."

"Is 7 o'clock okay?"

"Yep, fine."

"Okay, I'll see you at 7. Bye Nat-."

Nathan hung up before Haley could finish his name. Haley was stunned, she hadn't expected a warm reception or anything, but she hadn't expected Nathan to be so cold towards her. Haley hated that this had to be so hard.

Hours later Nathan made his way to the ice cream shop. He knew that seeing Haley was going to be weird, after all, just talking to her on the phone earlier had been weird. Nathan wasn't quite sure what Haley was going to say to him, but he knew that there was a very good chance that whatever she did have to say, he wouldn't want to hear.

Nathan had thought about Haley pretty much every minute of the entire summer. His friend Tony had done all he could to try and keep Nathan busy so he wouldn't obsess, but nothing worked. The whole drive from Maryland back to Tree Hill Nathan had debated with himself as to whether or not he should call Haley and tell her he was back in town. Finally, he had decided no.

After spending a whole summer thinking and dreaming about Haley, Nathan decided on his trip home, that that wasn't going to be the case anymore. Nathan was going to move on. He was going to go back to Syracuse and start his sophomore year, and he planned to live it up.

Nathan spotted Haley and walked over to her. She smiled once she saw him. Nathan wondered if there would ever be a day where her smile wouldn't make his heart skip a beat.

"Hey, Nathan. I'm glad you could make it."

Nathan just nodded as he held open the door for Haley.

They walked in and ordered their ice cream, then headed outside to sit down by the water and talk.

Haley tried to make small talk, but she quickly became frustrated as Nathan only provided one syllable answers to every question. Haley gave up and the two sat in silence.

After what seemed like hours of silence Haley spoke quietly, "I miss you Nathan. I worry I made the wrong decision."

As soon as Nathan heard those two words he sprung up off the bench and stood in front of Haley, "How dare you say that Haley. Honestly, what gives you the right? What do you think, the whole damn world revolves around you and what you want?"

Haley felt the anger grow inside of her. She stood to face him, knowing she had to defend herself.

"No, I don't think the world revolves around me. I'm just saying that maybe I made the wrong decision."

"So what Haley? You're just realizing that now? Huh? You had all summer to think about it. You had longer than all summer. You had from the minute you started thinking about breaking up with me to realize that it was the wrong decision."

"No, I knew it before now. I guess I just realized it when I saw you today."

"Well Haley, sorry, but it's too late. If you had called me a month ago, hell, even two days ago, and told me that I would have run back to you so quick, so quick Haley. But now, well now I've already decided to move on."

"I didn't realize it until I saw you." Haley felt her bottom lip begin to quiver as she spoke, she tried to hold strong though, not wanting to break down in tears in front of Nathan.

"Well you could have at least called and said you were thinking about it. I mean just throwing it on me now, the day before I leave, how fair is that? Honestly, I want to know how fair is that?"

"I guess it's not fair. I mean obviously we can't do anything about it, you're leaving again after all."

Nathan's eyes widened, he stared down at Haley in disbelief, "Don't you dare blame me, don't you dare blame my leaving. If you want to lay blame, fine, lets. If that's the case the real blame, all of the blame, is on you, you're the one who called it off. Remember?"

"Of course I remember, but I told you, I regret it."

"Yeah well it's too late. I can't just let you back in Haley, I can't. I was finally getting somewhere. I was finally going to move on from this. I need to move on, can't you understand that?"

"Why though? Why do you have to move on? I don't get it."

"Because I need to do just what you told me to do and live my own life for a while. You need to do that too. You're starting college soon Haley, enjoy it, enjoy it for yourself. Enjoy it without me. I need to start enjoying it for myself without you."

Haley just stood there, arms crossed. She couldn't say anything else. She knew he was right, she hated to admit it, but he was. She had said that they needed to live their own lives, and now he was going to do just that. It just hurt, not being able to get him back when she thought it was what she wanted.

"I'm going to go Haley. I don't think this was such a good idea. I'm just going to leave before we fight anymore, before we say anything we'll regret."

Nathan turned to walk away, but then hesitated. He turned back towards Haley and pulled her in close. Bending down he planted a searing kiss on her lips.

"This is what you wanted Haley. I'm just giving you what you wanted."

Haley stood there stunned as Nathan walked away. She was scared to move, afraid that her legs wouldn't hold her up if she tried to go anywhere. Haley knew she had lost, he was gone, and it was all her fault.


	38. Coming Home

Chapter 38- Coming Home

Haley pulled her coat around her tightly. There was a chill in the air that she could not escape. While the majority of the time Haley loved the climate that North Carolina afforded, December was notoriously a bitterly chilly month. Haley fought off a shiver and picked up her pace, heading towards her suite.

Walking into the suite Haley quickly stripped off her coat, as the heat was going full blast. Haley glanced around, checking to see if any of her suitemates were around. Before she got very far, Emma emerged from her bedroom.

"Hey Haley, you dropped off your paper?"

Emma had been Peyton's roommate freshman year, and along with Haley's freshman roommate Katie, the four became fast friends. Sophomore year their roommate pairings had remained the same, but the friends had moved in next door to one another. Junior year, they were all thrilled to have won the housing lottery and moved into one of the few and coveted four person upper classmen suites, each had their own room and they all shared a very large living room and kitchen.

"Yeah, it's all taken care of. Now, just one more final this afternoon and then I'm headed back to Tree Hill for Christmas break."

Haley was looking forward to break. This past semester had been ridiculously hard, and Haley was in dire need of some time to relax.

"Well I'm off to take my last final, and then I'm hitting the road. So Haley, have a good break and I'll see you in January."

Haley hugged Emma and nodded, "Yep, see you then. Good luck with your test, and drive safe."

Emma nodded and headed out of the suite. Haley headed for her room to finish packing and do some last minute cramming.

Later that day, Haley breathed a huge sigh of relief as she made her way to her car. One more semester down, three more to go. Haley found it hard to believe, she was more than halfway done with college already. The years had flown by and Haley was well aware that before she knew it, it would be time to face the real world.

Haley got into her car and started the engine. It was time to head home.

ooooOoooo

Nathan glanced down at his odometer, 600 miles down, 100 more to go. Nathan had made this same trip countless times the last four years, and each time he felt as though it took longer and longer. At least he could breathe easy knowing that this could be his last trip home. Come May, he was graduating and with all honesty, Nathan had no idea what the next chapter in his life would bring.

After changing his major countless times, Nathan had finally settled on a business major. While he had no idea what he would do with it, he was thankful that he had settled on a major that afforded him the luxury of having a multitude of choices as to what he would do for a career.

Nathan knew that the smart thing to do was to begin considering his options and making some kind of choice before he graduated, but that wasn't the path he had decided to take. Instead, Nathan had decided to just enjoy this last semester coming up, and worry about the real world when he was standing on its doorstep.

Having decided on his plan months ago, Nathan was nervous to share it with his father. Nathan's dad had begun working the day he graduated college, and it was only through his blood sweat and tears that he had come to be one of the richest men in Tree Hill. Nathan knew his dad would be disappointed that Nathan didn't want to follow in his dad's footsteps, having mapped out his life path well in advance of graduation.

Nathan had done well in school. He had buckled down sophomore year and realized that he had to create his own destiny. He had begun to take his classes more seriously, and had improved his grades immensely from his less than stellar performance freshman year. But now, Nathan knew that he had a good chance of graduating with honors.

Quickly losing himself in thought, Nathan failed to notice the miles flying past him. Before he knew it he saw the sign, Tree Hill 10 miles. He was almost home.

ooooOoooo

"Brooke, I know. I said I'd be there. Calm down, I'm just at the store now getting all this food you instructed me to bring. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Haley flipped her cell phone shut before Brooke could go on any longer. Brooke had decided that the girls would have an old fashioned slumber party tonight, their first night all back in Tree Hill. Brooke had called Haley about 20 times, adding something else to the shopping list each time.

Haley finally got all of the items on the list and headed quickly towards the check out lines. Realizing that she had forgotten the hot fudge Haley debated for a minute as to whether or not she should just forget about it, but she decided against it. No hot fudge would be a fate worth than death in Brooke's eyes. Whipping around to make her way back to the dessert aisle, Haley stopped, stunned. She couldn't believe it. There he was, right in front of her.

"Nathan."

"Haley."

The two stood there, absolutely silent, just looking at one another. They had somehow managed to avoid each other successfully for the past two and half years. They had managed to avoid this extremely awkward situation that they were now faced with.

Haley hadn't seen Nathan since he had kissed her and walked away just days before she started her freshman year of college. Despite the years that they hadn't seen one another, a day had never passed where Haley didn't think about Nathan. Even if that thought was a brief fleeting one, it was a thought nonetheless. Haley felt as though she had moved on from Nathan, but now, with him standing there before her, she found herself at a loss for words.

"How are you?" Nathan somehow managed to spit out.

"Ummm, good. Just heading over to Brooke's for a girls' night."

"Sounds fun. How are Brooke and Peyton?"

"They're good. Peyton's still at school with me, and Brooke's up in New York City going to fashion school."

Nathan nodded, "Yeah, I know. I see Lucas around school from time to time."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Haley's eyes darted around nervously. She had no idea what to say. "Well, I should probably get going. Brooke and Peyton are waiting."

"Okay, well it was good to see you Haley."

"You too Nathan." Haley turned to try and make a quick getaway.

Nathan watched as Haley began to walk away, and before he could take it back he called out to her.

"Haley."

Haley slowly turned around and looked questioningly at Nathan.

"Have dinner with me, tomorrow night? I would really like to catch up. If you're free I mean."

Haley answered immediately, without allowing herself to debate the possible ramifications, "Yeah, okay. I'm free."

"Okay, well, I'll pick you up at 6? If that works for you."

"Yeah, that's fine. I'll see you then." With that, Haley turned and headed back towards the register, knowing Brooke would get over the fact at the lack of hot fudge.

As she gathered her bags, and walked out of the store, Haley wondered if accepting his invitation had been a huge mistake.

"Did you get everything?" Brooke asked as she took the bags from Haley's hands the second Haley walked into the house.

Haley just nodded, standing there absolutely silent. She was still in shock from her run in with Nathan.

"Oh good, you got mint chocolate chip. Mmm, and Doritos. Wait, Haley." Brooke looked through all the bags, "Where's the hot fudge? I told you to get hot fudge didn't I?" Brooke put her hand on her hips and looked at Haley, waiting for an answer.

Haley just stood there, still silent.

"Seriously, Haley, the hot fudge?"

"I saw Nathan." Haley said quietly.

"WHAT?"

"I saw Nathan, at the store. He asked me to go out to dinner tomorrow and I said yes."

Brooke stood there stunned. It was her turn to be at a loss for words.

"I'm having dinner with Nathan tomorrow night. I still can't believe it. I've said it over and over to myself on the way here and I still don't believe it."

As Haley spoke Peyton walked into the kitchen, "Hey. Brooke, what's wrong with your face? Shut your mouth, you look like you're trying to catch flies."

"I saw Nathan. We're having dinner tomorrow night."

As Haley announced her news Peyton's jaw also dropped. All three girls stood there in silence, digesting the news.

Finally Brooke broke the silence, "What're you going to wear?"

ooooOoooo

Haley gazed across the table at Nathan. He looked older somehow, more mature. His eyes though, his eyes looked exactly the same, they hadn't lost their innocence, their boyish charm. And Haley could swear that when Nathan looked at her, there was a twinkle in his eyes.

Nathan looked up from his menu, and caught Haley staring at him. Their eyes met and she quickly averted her gaze, putting her full attention towards the menu in her hands. Nathan didn't think it was possible, but somehow Haley looked even more beautiful than he remembered. It amazed him that his dreams and memories of her didn't hold a candle to the woman sitting in front of him.

She wore her hair differently now. Back in high school she would always straighten her hair, just as all the other girls had, but now she wore it natural. It was wavy and fell loose around her shoulders. Haley had always worn minimal makeup, but now she wore even less, just a little lip gloss and mascara. She was more natural, it was as though she had grown into her beauty, like she now accepted it and just let it be.

"So how's school?" Haley's voice broke through Nathan's trance.

"It's good. One semester left. It seems unreal, I feel way too young to be graduating college."

"Any plans for after graduation?"

Nathan laughed. Leave it to Haley to ask about his plans for the future. "No, not yet. I'm just taking it day by day for now." Nathan paused, "What about you? How's school?"

"It's great. Hard, but good."

"Yeah, you always did love a challenge. Are you still planning to go to law school?"

"That's the plan." Haley smiled and then looked down, focusing on the salad in front of her.

The two made small talk while they waited for their meals. Once they arrived they ate in silence, just enjoying one another's company. The awkwardness of the situation had melted away and now it was just a familiar comfort.

"So you're happy?" Nathan asked as he looked towards Haley.

"Honestly?" Haley looked to Nathan, who nodded. "No, I'm not happy. I'm not unhappy though. I just am. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah Hales, it does."

Haley nearly choked on her water. She couldn't remember the last time he had called her that. The sound of it made her heart melt. Haley smiled, and placed her hand on the table. Nathan reached out and placed his hand on hers.

They just sat there like that until the waitress came over with the bill. Nathan slowly removed his hand, reaching into his pocket in order to pull out his wallet. He removed some cash and handed it to the waitress, telling her to keep the change.

Nathan stood up and walked over to Haley, pulling her chair out behind her as she stood. He helped her into her coat and then, placing a hand on her lower back, escorted her out of the restaurant.

Nathan guided Haley through the parking lot towards his car. Neither said a word, but somehow both knew what was going to happen. After Nathan opened the door for her, Haley slid into the passenger's seat. Nathan shut the door behind her and walked over to the driver's side. He got in and looked towards Haley.

Neither said a word, but she could see the question in his eyes. She nodded, her answer yes.


	39. Past, Present and Future

**Author's note: **Flashbacks are written in italics. Let me know what you think!

Chapter 39- Past, Present and Future

Haley slowly opened her eyes. Turning her head, she smiled as she looked over at him. Still asleep, he was snoring quietly, he looked so peaceful. The stubble on his face reminded her of the years that they hadn't spent together. She could vividly remember the days where he could get away with shaving just a couple times a week.

Untangling her legs from his, careful not to wake him, she rolled over onto her back. Shutting her eyes, she allowed her mind to drift back to last night.

_Nathan had driven them back to his house. They headed up towards his bedroom, still having not uttered a word to each other. For some reason, the silence seemed to say more than words ever could._

_Nathan closed the door behind the. Haley looked around as she took off her coat, his room hadn't changed a bit. It made her feel as though they were back in high school._

_As Haley looked around, Nathan walked up behind her. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist, and turned her around. He gazed deeply into her eyes, and slowly lowered his lips to hers. _

_He kissed her softly first, but the kiss quickly deepened, filled with passion. Haley reached up, wrapping her arms behind his neck, pulling him closer. Despite all the years that had passed, his kiss still made her feel the same way. _

Nathan could feel her moving next to him. He rolled over onto his side and looked over at her. She smiled when their eyes met.

"Some night huh?"

"Yeah. Was that what you had in mind when you asked me to dinner?" Haley teased.

"No, that was definitely unexpected. Unexpected and amazing." Nathan smiled at her, as he wrapped his arms around her.

_He let his hands graze softly down her neck and across her shoulders. Hooking his fingers underneath the straps of her dress, he pulled them off her shoulders. Her dress slid down her body, pooling at her feet._

_Nathan took in a sharp breath as he gazed down at her body. She stood there before him in nothing but a matching black lace bra and underwear. Nathan was amazed at how Haley could look so innocent yet so sexy. Lowering his head, he kissed her neck. _

_Haley reached out and unbuttoned Nathan's shirt, pushing it off his shoulders so it fell to the floor. Standing there before her in his white wife beater Haley noticed that he was more muscular than he used to be. Reaching down she pulled his wife beater from his jeans and began pulling it up, until he took her cue and pulled it over his head._

"Do you think that last night was a mistake?" Nathan asked.

"No, I don't. It was too beautiful to be wrong."

"It brings up all kinds of issues though, doesn't it?" Nathan raised an eyebrow.

"I guess, but what if we wait to talk those issues to death? Why don't we let what happens happen? When the time comes we'll deal with the issues, but right now, let's just enjoy it, okay?"

_Nathan reached behind her back, unhooking her bra, allowing her full breasts to spill out. He guided her towards the bed, easing her down beneath him slowly. He stood back up, off the bed, and unbuckled his belt, sliding his khakis off. _

_Lowering himself on top of her again, this time only her lace panties and his boxer briefs separating them, their mouths found each other again, and they furiously kissed. The passion between them was almost too much to handle._

_Nathan trailed kisses down Haley's stomach until he reached the small scrap of lace. He slid them off and then continued his kisses until he found her center. When his tongue reached her most sensitive place, she squirmed beneath him in pleasure, letting out a small moan. _

_He couldn't wait any longer so he stood up again, stepping out of his boxer briefs. Lowering himself over her once again he gazed into her eyes, making sure she was okay. Making sure she wanted this. Her eyes told him that she was fine, that she wanted him. She nodded and he slowly eased himself between her legs, as she opened them wider to allow him access._

_He entered her slowly, surprised by her tightness. Once he was inside of her he lay still for a moment, allowing her time to adjust. Then he began to move in and out of her slowly. Her moans of pleasure urged him on and he quickened his pace. She moved along with him and felt her orgasm coming on quickly. She could tell by his breathing that he was also close. _

_Letting go, she allowed the waves of pleasure to overcome her. She screamed out in pleasure, and Nathan quickly joined her. _

_Afterwards, he lay there on top of her, afraid to move. He was scared that if he moved he would awake, as though it had been a dream. He held her tight, not wanting to let go. _

_He'd been with other girls these past years, but that was just sex. With Haley it wasn't just sex, it was love. A love so deep, so passionate, that neither could fully understand it. _

ooooOoooo

Haley gazed out the window, smiling as she looked down the street at all the houses adorned in Christmas lights. The owners of the houses on Brooke's street always went all out with Christmas decorations. The houses were huge and always done up to the nines.

"As I live and breathe, Haley James, in the flesh. You've been absolutely impossibly to get a hold of these past few days, I thought you ran off and joined a nunnery or something." Brooke exclaimed as she entered the room carrying a tray of steaming hot cocoa.

"A little overdramatic are we?" Haley teased. "I've been busy. Sorry."

"Yeah well remember me, your best friend? You should never be too busy for me."

"Don't worry Brooke, as long as I live I'll never forget about you. After all, you'd never let me!" Brooke smirked at Haley. "Seriously though, I'll fill you in on what's been going on when Peyton gets here."

Brooke crossed her arms and puffed out her bottom lip, "Not fair. I hate waiting."

"I know, I know. She'll be here soon though. Why don't you tell me what Lucas got you for Christmas while we're waiting."

"He hasn't given me anything yet, who says I know what he got me?" Brooke asked innocently.

"If you don't know then this would be the first year that you haven't begged and pleaded for him to tell you. You drive him nuts Brooke, he always caves, every year. Why would this year be any different?"

"You're right, it isn't."

Brooke smiled smugly and began talking about what Lucas had gotten her. After a few minutes Haley heard the front door open, a few seconds later Peyton walked into the room.

"Haley James, long time no see."

"Not you too! I've been busy. Sorry."

"It's about time you showed up P. Sawyer. Haley here wouldn't tell me what, or who, she's been doing these past few days. Haley, come on, spill."

Haley took a deep breath, "Okay, well, you know that I had dinner with Nathan the other night right?"

Haley looked to her friends who nodded affirmatively.

"Well, after dinner we went back to his house. And we kind of…."

"…I knew it, I knew it." Brooke interrupted, "No one besides Nathan can make you smile that dopey smile. How was it?"

"It was amazing, even better than it used to be. I swear, I get chills just thinking about it. Since then we've been spending a lot of time together."

"So what does this mean? Are you guys getting back together?" Peyton asked, always being the one to ask the practical questions.

"I don't know. He leaves the day after tomorrow to fly down to Florida to spend New Year's with his mother. Then he's back here for like a day before he has to drive back up to school. We really only have a couple more days together, and I really don't know what's going to happen after that."

"You haven't talked about it?" Peyton pried further.

"No, we've been waiting. We wanted to just enjoy what little time we could have together, all the other stuff we'll deal with before he leaves."

"Enough about the serious stuff," Brooke interrupted again, "Back to the sex, I want details."

Haley blushed. "Some things never change."

ooooOoooo

Nathan and Haley lay in Nathan's bed. It was Christmas night, and both had had exhausting days filled with family, food and presents.

"I can't believe I have to do this whole Christmas thing again when I get to Florida."

"Oh poor baby, some people aren't lucky enough to get even one Christmas and here you complain about having two." Haley teased.

"I guess it wouldn't be so bad if it didn't mean having to say good bye to you."

"Uh oh, I feel the dreaded conversation beginning."

Haley sat up, pulling her legs in so she was sitting Indian style in front of Nathan. Nathan took the cue and sat up as well.

"What are we doing Nathan? As much as I've loved these past few days, I worry we're only setting ourselves up for heartache."

"I know Hales. I've thought the same thing. It's like no matter what happens, no matter how great these last few days together have been, I'm still leaving. Me leaving, it's what broke us up before."

Haley felt a wave of guilt wash over her. She wished he didn't place the blame on himself. "It wasn't just you leaving. It was me too, actually it was mostly me. I just wasn't mature enough to handle it. It wasn't just you being far away that I couldn't handle, it was everything, this whole relationship. It just felt like it was too much sometimes. Like it was so serious, but we were too young for it. At least I was too young for it. I ran away Nathan, and I'm so sorry about that."

"Hales, it's okay. It was hard, for me too. Part of me wanted to be the normal college freshman, going to parties, doing what I pleased, but then there was the other part of me. The part of me that never wanted to let you go. God Haley, I still don't. You're such a part of my past. I want you to be part of my present and my future."

Haley felt tears well up in her eyes, "I want that too Nathan. I really do. Giving up what you and I had was the hardest thing I've ever done. And now it's like its back, everything we had is back and I can't bear to lose it again."

"I don't know if I can either. I remember what it was like, walking away from you all those years ago. I swear, it felt as though my heart was being ripped to shreds. I couldn't bear the thought of dealing with that feeling again. That was what kept me away all these years."

"I always wondered why you felt you had to leave that summer we broke up. It never made sense to me."

Nathan nodded in understanding, "I knew you didn't understand it. It was just that Tree Hill didn't seem like it was big enough for both of us. It seemed inevitable that we would end up at the same party, or at the mall at the same time, something like that. Seeing you wasn't a chance I could take. Being near you hurt, it physically hurt Haley." Nathan looked down at his hands in his lap. "I saw you once, about a year ago. Over Thanksgiving break." He spoke softly.

"Where?"

"At the mall. You and Brooke were shopping. I walked by some store and looked inside and there you were. It took everything I had to not walk into that store and pull you into my arms."

"Why didn't you at least come in and say hi?"

"Honestly? I think that I knew that when you and I finally did talk again that we'd end up right back here. I wasn't ready for it then. I didn't think you were either. I felt we still had more growing up to do."

Haley smiled, "You're right, we did. I wasn't in the same place last year that I am now. So what do we do, now that we're here again?"

"Well, I think that jumping back into a relationship wouldn't be the smartest choice. No matter how much we've grown up, I think we'd still have the same problems. I think we should just ease into everything. We'll take it slow. We'll start by just trying to talk regularly. Phone calls, e-mails, we'll see how we do with that. Baby steps ya know?"

"Baby steps. Sounds good to me. Promise me one thing though Nathan." Haley reached for Nathan's hand.

"What?"

"Promise me that we won't have secrets this time. I want us to talk about everything, no matter how hard it is. We need to get back our trust. We never were lacking for love, that's a given, but trust, well I think we started to lack there."

"Yeah we did. I promise, no secrets." As Nathan spoke he looked into Haley's eyes.

"I promise too." Haley smiled.

They sat there in silence for a moment, just looking into one another's eyes. They were both thinking the same thing and knew it, but Nathan decided to actually say it.

"I love you Hales. I have since the day I met you. No matter if we were together or not, no matter how many miles were between us, I've always loved you."

Haley leapt into Nathan's arms, "I love you too Nathan, so much. See, I told you, people who are meant to be together always end up that way in the end."


	40. To See You Smile

**Author's note:** 40 chapters already! Wow, I can't believe it. Thanks to my loyal readers and reviewers, it's your reviews that keep me going. This chapter is a little fluff, but after all the angst in the past chapters I thought it necessary to have some Naley happiness.

Chapter 40- To See You Smile

Haley hurriedly made her way back to the dorm. It had been raining all day and she couldn't wait to get out of her soaking wet clothes. She also couldn't wait to check her e-mail. She was expecting an e-mail from Nathan since she had been too busy to talk to him at all the entire day.

It was probably for the best that they wouldn't be talking. Haley was not in the best of moods. She was overwhelmed with classes, she'd had a presentation earlier in the day that hadn't gone well, and to top it all off dance team practice had run almost an hour late, cutting into Haley's much needed study time.

As soon as Haley walked into the door of her suite she began peeling off her wet clothes. Once she entered her room she grabbed her warm fluffy robe and tied it tightly around herself. Sitting down in front of her computer she flicked on the screen and typed in the web address for her e-mail.

Waiting anxiously, Haley's mind began to drift. Things were going good for her and Nathan. They still weren't back together for real, but they were in a good place. By talking almost everyday they'd found that familiarity that they once were so comfortable with.

A huge smile broke out on Haley's face as she saw that Nathan had in fact e-mailed her. It was a short e-mail, but it was just enough to let Haley know that she was on his mind.

_Hales,_

_I know we can't talk tonight so I wanted to write you quickly. Hope your day is going good. I hope your presentation went well, I'm sure you did great. Today was nuts, I'm so tired. I just really wish I could hear your voice right now. _

_Nathan_

Haley knew they had agreed not to talk tonight so they could get everything they had to do done, but after reading that she found it impossible to not call. Pulling out her cell phone she quickly dialed Nathan's number

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Hales? I thought you weren't going to have time to talk tonight?"

"I really don't, but I saw your e-mail and how could I not call?"

"I just wanted to hear your voice, it just always gives me that reassurance I need."

"Nathan, I can always make time for you, even when it seems impossible. I'll always be here when you need it."

"I did a lot of thinking today Hales, and I know that you need time to adjust to all this and that you don't want to rush into anything, and I understand that. But, I decided that you're all I want so from here on out, so even if you aren't ready yet, my heart belongs to you and no one else. Take all the time you need though Hales, when you're ready I'll be waiting."

Haley drew in a sharp breath. She hadn't been expecting this. Honestly, she hadn't really been expecting anything. After all, that was part of the reason that their relationship crumbled before, expectations, labels, it was all too much. Suddenly now though, somehow, it didn't scare her. He was bringing it up, the prospect of them really being a couple again, and Haley wasn't scared.

"I'm ready Nathan."

"You don't have to say that Hales."

"I'm not just saying it, I mean it. I'm ready. I want us to be together again."

"Well this day is certainly beginning to look up."

Haley could hear the smile in his voice as he spoke.

"Yes, it is isn't it?" Haley glanced over at the clock, "Oh Nathan, not to cut this short, but I really have to go. I have tons of work to do."

"It's okay Hales, I get it. I'll talk to you again soon. Goodnight sweetheart."

With that he hung up. Haley just sat there staring at her cell phone in her hand. She couldn't believe it, they were back together. After all the years, and all the miles that had separated them, they were back together.

Haley walked back over to her desk and sat down. She looked down at the open textbook lying in front of her and knew it was time to focus. Less than ten seconds later she jumped out of her chair, knowing that the chances of her being able to actually absorb anything she'd read were slim.

Dashing out of her room she ran next door to Peyton's room. Peyton was curled up on her bed doing some reading. Haley dashed over and hopped on the bed next to her.

"How goes the studying P. Sawyer."

"Jeez _Tutorgirl_, sounds liked you've been spending too much time talking to Brooke." Peyton teased, Brooke was famous for her nicknames for her friends. Peyton looked at Haley, "You're practically bouncing of the walls, what's got you so excited?"

"Oh nothing, just that Nathan and I are back together." Haley tried to say nonchalantly.

"Oh my god, seriously! I can't believe it. This is great. You must be so happy."

"You have no idea. I tried to study for like half a minute and knew there was no way I'd be able to concentrate."

"Understandable, but, I have it on good authority that if you don't ace that test you have tomorrow in your political ethics class, you can kiss that 4.0 good bye."

Haley frowned at the prospect, "Way to rain on a girl's parade."

"Yeah, that's me, Miss Pessimistic. Now go, study, I don't want to have to put up with the 'I bombed one test my life is over' pity party I've come to know and love."

Haley stepped off the bed, "I'm going, I'm going."

Haley threw her hands up in the air to exaggerate her exasperation. Just as she got to the door Peyton stopped her.

"Hales?"

Haley turned around to face Peyton, "Yeah?"

"Congratulations."

Haley smiled and nodded and headed back towards her room. Peyton was right, it was time to study. She could celebrate after her test.

ooooOoooo

"So how'd the big test go?"

"I think I did really well. I better have, I was up studying for it most of the night."

Haley had been waiting all day to talk to Nathan. His timing couldn't have been better, he'd called right after she finished her test.

"Well go and take a nap or something, sounds like you deserve it."

"I wish I could, dance practice starts in half an hour."

"Well, after that the days done, then go back and relax." Nathan paused, "I just wanted to let you know that I've been walking all over campus with the most ridiculous grin on my face, and that's all your fault."

"So sorry to be a burden." Haley teased. "I know what you mean though, I'm just so happy." 

"I detect a little uncertainty in that, everything's okay right?" Nathan felt a tinge of worry grow inside of him.

"Everything is great, really. I guess I'm just a little disappointed that we're back together and all but we still won't get to see each other any time soon. I wish we could celebrate this ya know?"

"I know Hales, I do too. It's just not the best timing, right in the thick of the semester. Spring break is coming up soon, we'll try and figure something out for then, I promise."

"That sounds good. Okay, I have to run. I have to get changed and stuff."

"Okay Hales, I'll talk to you later. Have fun at practice."

"I'll try, bye Nathan."

Haley flipped shut her phone and smiled. She knew he was right. They'd work something out for spring break. That was only about a month away, she'd be fine until then.

ooooOoooo

It was Saturday afternoon and Haley was relieved that she had absolutely nothing to do. Wanting to take advantage of this rare event, she had opted for a day of lounging around on the couch, doing nothing but watching movies with Emma.

It was Valentine's Day and the two were wallowing in their own self pity. Emma's boyfriend was away for a basketball game so the two girls were valentineless.

"Seriously Haley, I'm picking the next movie. All you ever pick are these stupid movies that make me cry."

Haley turned to face Emma, her mouth wide open, feigning shock. "I don't think I can be friends with someone who calls The Notebook stupid. Seriously, it's like the best movie ever. I mean come on, Noah and Allie, back together after all of those years."

"Hmmm, sounds familiar. Maybe we should start calling you Allie. I wonder if Nathan rebuilt a house for you."

"Haha." Haley's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Nathan isn't one for big gestures like that."

They heard a faint knocking on the door to their suite and Emma hopped off the couch, "That must be the chinese food."

"There's money in my purse, just grab whatever my share is." Haley called after Emma.

A few minutes later Emma walked back into the room and sat down on the couch.

"Where's the food?" Haley asked curiously.

"That wasn't the chinese food, but I think you'll like it better." Emma gestured for Haley to turn around.

After shooting a confused look towards Emma, Haley slowly turned around, not quite sure what to expect.

"Nathan?" Haley yelped as she jumped over the back of the couch and ran into his arms. "What're you doing here?"

"Well, I was thinking about how you were a little bummed that we couldn't celebrate getting back together. Then I thought about how it was Valentine's Day and all, and I've already spend so many Valentine's Days away from you, I didn't want that to happen again. So, I convinced my dad to buy me a plane ticket, so here I am."

"Here you are." Haley stood up on her tip toes to kiss Nathan. "This is the best surprise, how did you not tell me you were planning it?"

"It was tough, but I knew that the look on your face would be priceless."

"How long can you stay for?"

"Well, unfortunately I can only stay for tonight. My plane leaves tomorrow at noon. We booked the ticket so late I have like two lay overs so it will take me like 8 hours to get back to New York. But, I was hoping that I could take you out to dinner tonight?"

"I don't know…I kind of already have a hot date with this couch here." Haley teased.

"I would hate to get in the way of that." Nathan laughed. "Should I take it that's a yes?"

"Seriously, do you even have to ask?" Haley smiled up at him, "I still can't believe you came all this way for one night."

"Haven't you realized it yet Hales? I'd do just about anything just to see you smile."


	41. Forever Together

**Author's note:** Well guys, it's here. The last chapter. The good news, I'm going to start working on a sequel. Truth be told, I have a lot I want to do with this Naley, but it's a little ways down the road. I'd have to try and come up with drama or fill it with fluff to get there, and I'm just not a big fan of too much fluff or using tired ideas. I promise, tons of new Naley drama in the sequel. It will start off with some flashbacks from the time we won't see between stories. So, add me to author alert so you know when it's here. I don't have a title picked out, but it will be my next new story. In the meantime, if you're a fan of Brucas check out one of my other stories Beautiful Disaster. Thanks to everyone who has read this story, I hope you enjoy this last chapter, and let the reviews flow!

Chapter 41- Forever Together

"Hales, seriously, we have to go, like half an hour. Are you almost ready?" Nathan stood at the bottom of the stairs staring up at the second floor of his fraternity house, hoping his girlfriend would appear.

Nathan was supposed to be down at the stadium in 10 minutes to get in line for the graduation procession. Seeing as how the drive over would take probably 15 minutes, it wasn't looking too promising that he was going to be one time. What a role reversal, he was waiting on Haley. Times sure had changed. Back in the day it would have been Nathan who could have cared less about being on time to a school function, while Haley would have been sitting in the car honking the horn at him 10 minutes before they had to leave.

"Calm down, I'm ready."

Nathan smiled as Haley walked towards the top of the stairs. She'd curled her hair and it fell loosely over her shoulders, Nathan loved her hair that way. She had on a knee length flowered dress that hugged her in all the right places.

"I'm telling you, I better be worth the wait. I'm not used to getting ready in this kind of heat, I've never lived somewhere without air conditioning. Not to mention New York is like the stickiest place ever in the summer. I couldn't control the frizzing...Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're beautiful Hales, absolutely beautiful."

"Thanks."

Haley blushed a little bit. It never got old, him calling her beautiful. It made her feel like a giggly school girl almost every time.

Nathan opened the front door, allowing Haley to go before him, and the two headed hand in hand down to Nathan's car.

The rode over to the stadium in silence, Nathan was surprised that he was actually nervous. He'd never thought this day would come. He was graduating college. After four of the hardest years of his life he was finally done. And now he was ready for the next phase of his life. Haley had asked about his plans time and time again, but he just brushed the inquiries aside, telling her she'd find out in due time what his plans were. All she knew was that he would be heading back to Tree Hill with her the next morning, for how long, she had no idea.

Nathan had figured out what he wanted to do months ago, but he'd held Haley off. It was never the right time to tell her. Nathan had pulled out all the stops though, and he knew that dinner that night would be just the right time.

Nathan pulled up in front of the stadium and turned to Haley, "I really have to get in there. Can you park the car?"

"It's the least I can do, seeing as how you're late because of me."

"Thanks." He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Now you have your ticket right?"

"Yes, I have my ticket. I'll see you after. Good luck."

Haley hopped out of Nathan's SUV and watched as he walked inside. She got into the driver's seat and pulled away from the curb, she knew searching for a parking spot would take a while. Good thing the graduates had to be there really early, she still had an hour before the ceremony would start.

Half an hour later Haley was making her way up the hill to the stadium. As she thought, she couldn't find parking anywhere nearby so she'd had to park forever away. She was definitely cursing her choice of shoes, some nice flip flops would have made this trek so much easier, but no, she'd opted for stilettos. Damn Brooke for ever getting her hooked on shoes.

Haley looked around as she walked, the hill she was on afforded her a nice view of the campus. Syracuse was absolutely huge, Haley couldn't imagine going to school there. It was also hard for her to imagine Nathan here. He spent four years in a place she barely knew. She'd managed to visit a couple of times over the past few months, but it was just too expensive to do with any regularity. The drive took about 11 hours, so Haley always opted for flying.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she thought of how happy she was that she'd be driving back to Tree Hill with Nathan tomorrow. After all the years of being apart they'd finally live in the same place, at least for a little while. Nathan had been very secretive about his plans. She wasn't sure why, but she really wasn't worried. She knew that Nathan had a plan, whether he wanted one or not. His father would have forced him to come up with something.

Haley made her way through the sea of bleachers, relieved when she spotted Nathan's mom's smiling face.

"Haley. It's so good to see you." Deb said as she pulled Haley into a hug. "It's been way too long."

Haley nodded in agreement. "It really has. How's Florida?"

"It's good. I've settled in nicely. Anything was better than living in Tree Hill with Dan. So tell me, how are things with you. How's school?"

"School's good. I just finished my junior year. Next year I have to take the LSATs and start applying to law school. It's pretty intimidating, but I've been looking forward to becoming a lawyer for pretty much my whole life."

"And how are things with you and Nathan?"

"They're going really good. I'm just so relieved that he's done with school and we won't have half the eastern seaboard separating us anymore. Speaking of which, has he told you his plans?"

Deb smiled, "Yes he has, but he has also told me not to tell you, no matter how much you beg. But let me just say this, you will like them."

"Good answer."

The two women made small talk until the ceremony began. Syracuse was so big that it held multiple graduations so that no one ceremony would take too long. The students didn't even walk the stage. They simply had their names read. But still, just seeing Nathan sitting there, surrounded by his classmates, in his cap and gown made Haley's heart swell. She was so proud of him.

The yellow cord that lay round his neck truly symbolized his hard work, he'd graduated with honors. Haley had always known Nathan was smart, he just never applied himself. She was glad to see that once he got to college that changed.

After the ceremony Deb and Haley headed outside to wait for Nathan. Finally, he emerged from the sea of students that surrounded them.

"Aw, my boy. I'm so proud of you." Deb spoke as she pulled Nathan into a tight hug.

"Thanks Mom. I appreciate you coming all the way up here even though I didn't get to walk the stage."

"I was just glad to spend some time with you." Deb glanced down at her watch, "But now I'm off, I'm meeting an old friend for dinner. I'll see you guys tomorrow for breakfast?"

Nathan and Haley nodded simultaneously and watched as Deb walked off. Nathan turned to Haley and she wrapped her arms around her neck, pulling him into a hug.

"I'm so proud of you Nathan, really. I know you worked so hard these past four years. I just wish I could have been there for more of it."

"Shh, Haley, there's no point in rehashing any of that. What happened happened, we're together now and that's what's important. Now, we'd better get a move on, we have dinner reservations."

Haley and Nathan walked hand in hand to his car, talking about the night's events. There were quite a few graduation parties that Nathan wanted to make an appearance at.

After being escorted to their table and ordering their drinks and an appetizer, Nathan began to speak.

"I know I've been secretive on my plans. The only reason for that is that I wanted to work everything out before I told you what I wanted to do. I didn't want to get your hopes up just to have something not work out and then let you down."

Nathan paused and reached for his drink, taking a long sip, smiling as he noticed Haley squirm. Just then the waiter brought out their appetizers and took their dinner orders. Nathan laughed as Haley spoke quickly, trying to shoo the waiter away so that Nathan would keep talking. Once the waiter left Nathan reached out for a mozzarella stick, but once he saw the venomous look in Haley's eyes, he quickly retracted his hand.

"Okay, well, you know that I'm going to go back to Tree Hill with you tomorrow. I've already talked to your parents and I'll be staying in the guest room at your house for the summer. After that it's kind of up to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I've been looking at apartments. And I was kind of wondering if maybe you'd want to look at them with me?"

Haley's smile quickly turned to a frown. "Umm, sure. Yeah. I can do that."

"I was hoping that you'd look with me in hopes that maybe you'd want to live there with me."

"But Nathan, I have school, one more year remember?"

"The apartments I've been looking at are in Chapel Hill."

Haley looked at Nathan, clearly shocked at what he'd just said. Once the shock wore off she sprung from her chair and threw her arms around his neck. She held him tightly for a few minutes before returning to her seat.

"Oh Nathan, of course I'll live with you."

Nathan smiled and leaned over, planting a light kiss on Haley's lips.

"But Nathan, what're you going to do? I mean work, school? What?"

"Well, I decided to go on and get my MBA, but I figured I could put that off for a year. I mean, you'll start applying to law schools soon and I figured that if any of those law schools had MBA programs then I'll apply there too, or to nearby schools. I can start my MBA program when you start on your law degree. For that year in between I'll get a job. I'll do whatever, as long as it pays the rent so you don't have to work and can just focus on school and enjoying your senior year."

Nathan noticed that the smile that had been plastered across Haley's face had turned into a frown yet again. "Hales?"

"That's a lot to give up for me Nathan. I mean, you'll be starting work on your MBA a year later than you'd planned on. You'll be moving to a whole new place where you'll know what, two people? Me and Peyton, that's it. You'll work some job that you probably won't like just to pay our rent? And then you'll apply to MBA programs based on where I want to go to law school? It just seems like too much Nathan. I don't want you to move for me and then hate it. Hate Chapel Hill, hate your job. Wish you were in school. I don't want you to hate it and resent me for dragging you there…."

"…Hey, hey, hey. Deep breath Hales." Nathan interrupted. "First off, I'm doing this because it's what I want to do. I've given it a lot of thought. Yeah, obviously it's so we can be together, but it's what I want. I'll never resent you for this. You didn't ask me to move. In fact you were very supportive of my choosing what I want to do for myself. I'll never resent you for it because you're not asking me to do it. As for everything else, I'll make friends. I'm not worried about that. And so what if I don't have a job I love? It's only for a year. I want to take care of you Haley, that's important to me. We've been apart long enough and I just can't take it anymore. I want us to start on our life together. This is the best way. I don't want to start some MBA program and then have you decide to go to law school somewhere half way across the country. I can't risk us spending more years apart. And so what if I take a year off? Honestly, I'll enjoy not having classes and tons of studying to do every night."

Haley began to nod, "Okay, but only if this is really what you want."

"Hales, being with you is all I've ever wanted."


End file.
